Opiates have become a crisis

By Jason Good, Clearwater, Fla.

Wednesday, May 29, 2019 | 2 a.m.

Fentanyl is the strongest opiate on the streets; it’s estimated to be 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times stronger than heroin.

Not only is fentanyl sold on the streets as is, it’s also mixed into other drugs by dealers who have no regard for human life; all they care about is taking addicts’ money. Fentanyl has recently been found in heroin, cocaine and marijuana. Unsuspecting addicts consume the drug in the amounts they’re used to, oblivious to the fact that they are about to ingest a lethal dose of fentanyl.

Fentanyl was originally supposed to be used by cancer patients and for end-of-life pain. It was rarely prescribed as a take-home medicine for chronic pain or painful disorders.

Now, fentanyl is available on street corners nationwide after being imported from China. To get a grip on this epidemic, doctors must stop over-prescribing opiates so as to not create new addicts, and effective drug rehab needs to be made available to anyone who needs it.

Addiction doesn’t care who you are, how you were raised or where you’re from; it can affect anyone.