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How the fentanyl crisis' fourth wave has hit every corner of the US

bbc.com

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Re: How the fentanyl crisis' fourth wave has hit every corner of the US

#21

Post by beezlewax »

gambiting wrote: post #11
0xCAP wrote: post #10

Non US person here, so feel free to call me out on BS. IMHO people who do fentanyl already have pretty serious mental and/or existential issues going on, like who tf would play russian roulette like that? Sounds more like a societal problem than a mere drug distribution regulation problem to me.

From what I understand - people who got addicted to legal opiates now can't access them and fentanyl is somewhat accessible and gives same effect with lower dose. So it's not necessarily your stereotypical junkies that are using it, it's normal people who were given opiates to deal with pain and now got addicted.

So all those oxy prescriptions weren't a good idea then?

Re: How the fentanyl crisis' fourth wave has hit every corner of the US

#22

Post by fabian2k »

Just to get an impression for the scale, the paper that is linked in the article shows that there were ~40000 deaths due to overdose in 2010 and a bit more than 100000 deaths in 2021. So this is not just fentanyl becoming a larger part of the portion of deaths, but a very significant increase in total deaths as well.

Re: How the fentanyl crisis' fourth wave has hit every corner of the US

#23

Post by vuln »

beezlewax wrote: post #21
gambiting wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From what I understand - people who got addicted to legal opiates now can't access them and fentanyl is somewhat accessible and gives same effect with lower dose. So it's not necessarily your stereotypical junkies that are using it, it's normal people who were given opiates to deal with pain and now got addicted.

So all those oxy prescriptions weren't a good idea then?

I don’t think you’ll find anyone to argue that they were.

Re: How the fentanyl crisis' fourth wave has hit every corner of the US

#24

Post by withinboredom »

I had to get a colonoscopy and be awake for the whole thing. They gave me fentanyl (my first and only time ever experiencing this drug) for the procedure. I have very fond memories of the entire experience, which is extremely disconcerting considering what was going on at the time. This drug probably shouldn’t exist imho.

Re: How the fentanyl crisis' fourth wave has hit every corner of the US

#25

Post by ricardo81 »

0xCAP wrote: post #10

Non US person here, so feel free to call me out on BS. IMHO people who do fentanyl already have pretty serious mental and/or existential issues going on, like who tf would play russian roulette like that? Sounds more like a societal problem than a mere drug distribution regulation problem to me.

As the article mentions, some people are unwittingly taking it because their other drug of choice is laced with it, and they become addicted this way.

Re: How the fentanyl crisis' fourth wave has hit every corner of the US

#26

Post by hypertele-Xii »

tyingq wrote: post #9

One thing you can do is have some narcan (naloxone) on hand. It's available without a prescription at national brand pharmacies. Many insurance plans have a $0 copay for it, almost all would be under $20. Useful even if you don't know anyone in your life that would use fentanyl. There's any number of situations where it could happen.

Naloxone is a medication used to reverse or reduce the effects of opioids, like fentanyl.

Re: How the fentanyl crisis' fourth wave has hit every corner of the US

#27

Post by simonebrunozzi »

fabian2k wrote: post #22

Just to get an impression for the scale, the paper that is linked in the article shows that there were ~40000 deaths due to overdose in 2010 and a bit more than 100000 deaths in 2021. So this is not just fentanyl becoming a larger part of the portion of deaths, but a very significant increase in total deaths as well.

Minor nitpick: when you provide figures in the multiple thousands, it really improves readability if you use the thousand separator (40000 -> 40,000, and even more so 100000 -> 100,000). Thanks.

Re: How the fentanyl crisis' fourth wave has hit every corner of the US

#28

Post by hypertele-Xii »

vuln wrote: post #20
ffgjgf1 wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe we could also have Futurama style euthanasia booths just outside the entrance?

Not a booth per se but you sign a few papers and you can be suicided within 30 days in Canada.

Medical assistance in dying (MAID)

The only difference to 'Medical assistance in addiction', is the former is much cheaper as the person won't need any help, ever.

Re: How the fentanyl crisis' fourth wave has hit every corner of the US

#30

Post by matwood »

minerva23 wrote: post #14

On a micro level, I live in the US and I don't know anyone who takes fentanyl. "Every corner" is likely journalistic hyperbole.

Maybe not on purpose. Fentanyl is being used to cut other recreational drugs like cocaine and MDMA.
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