Treatment Inside the War on Drugs Drug addiction is a problem in America. To combat the problem, the United States Government, President Richard Nixon waged a war on drugs (qtd. In US War on Drug). The war on drugs capitalizes on every aspect of the issues except one, which has been left out of the equation. Billions of dollars annually are disbursed for things such as police enforcement and in turn they have focused most of their attention on nonviolent offenders rather than violent criminals. More than eight percent of drug arrests are for possession charges only. Why are drug users locked up and not given treatment for their addictions? Treatment is the one thing which is either kept a secret or not on the radar in the war on drugs. Before
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Drug abusers use various methods to avoid detection and obtain prescription painkillers for illegitimate uses. Many rogue physicians facilitate the drug abusers by illegally supplying the drugs. Other physicians do not have adequate training to recognize or address prescription drug abuse. Finally, pharmacists, the suppliers of most prescription painkillers, may be unable to detect potential drug abuse or, in the case of rogue pharmacists may promote it. State PDMPs intended to combat prescription drug abuse have made some limited progress but they do not, and cannot, live up to their potential for the numerous reasons outlined in this Article. A national controlled substance dispensing reporting system that builds on existing PBM networks would be significantly more effective than these other options. Such a system would close the current loophole for cash transactions and interstate purchases of prescription drugs. Moreover, by utilizing existing PBM systems, including data mining and advanced analytics, it could detect and deter potential drug abuse. The tools for such a solution already exist and it would require minimal cost and time to adapt them. By providing real-time analysis and immediate notification to pharmacists in advance of dispensing controlled substances, such a system would go a long way in stemming the current …show more content…
Men, women, and children alike are addicted to either alcohol or illegal drugs and the only way they could get them was on the black market. Drug cartels and organized crime lords have brilliant criminal minds and just as they saw the need when alcohol was prohibited they sought to fill the need for illegal drugs pursued by addicts. Organized crime and drug dealers are benefiting tremendously from this diseased epidemic. This is a huge business which has led to more emergency room visits, violent criminal activities, increased court room visits, to filled prisons. In her article, Organized Criminals Won’t Fade Away, Vanda Felbab-Brown, makes a great statement that is more believable today than
Drug abusers use various methods to avoid detection and obtain prescription painkillers for illegitimate uses. Many rogue physicians facilitate the drug abusers by illegally supplying the drugs. Other physicians do not have adequate training to recognize or address prescription drug abuse. Finally, pharmacists, the suppliers of most prescription painkillers, may be unable to detect potential drug abuse or, in the case of rogue pharmacists may promote it. State PDMPs intended to combat prescription drug abuse have made some limited progress but they do not, and cannot, live up to their potential for the numerous reasons outlined in this Article. A national controlled substance dispensing reporting system that builds on existing PBM networks would be significantly more effective than these other options. Such a system would close the current loophole for cash transactions and interstate purchases of prescription drugs. Moreover, by utilizing existing PBM systems, including data mining and advanced analytics, it could detect and deter potential drug abuse. The tools for such a solution already exist and it would require minimal cost and time to adapt them. By providing real-time analysis and immediate notification to pharmacists in advance of dispensing controlled substances, such a system would go a long way in stemming the current …show more content…
Men, women, and children alike are addicted to either alcohol or illegal drugs and the only way they could get them was on the black market. Drug cartels and organized crime lords have brilliant criminal minds and just as they saw the need when alcohol was prohibited they sought to fill the need for illegal drugs pursued by addicts. Organized crime and drug dealers are benefiting tremendously from this diseased epidemic. This is a huge business which has led to more emergency room visits, violent criminal activities, increased court room visits, to filled prisons. In her article, Organized Criminals Won’t Fade Away, Vanda Felbab-Brown, makes a great statement that is more believable today than