A new study finds that there is a growing racial disparity in opioid deaths among the Black population and other racial and ethnic groups. The National Institute on Drug Abuse research analyzed data from four states—Kentucky, Ohio, Massachusetts, and New York—and found that opioid deaths among Blacks increased by 38 percent between 2018 and 2019, while rates for other groups did not rise a all. In earlier waves of the epidemic, African Americans had lower rates of overdose deaths than whites, amid heavy prescribing of prescription painkillers in white communities. Experts say the shift in populations is due in part to structural differences in healthcare, including access to effective treatment options, and data suggesting that Blacks are less likely to be prescribed opioid withdrawal medications.
Meanwhile, in an opinion piece in the Boston Globe, two psychiatrists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center write that it is critical for society to recognize the opioid crisis and to understand how secrets and stigma allow it to grow. Writing in honor of National Recovery Months, the physicians urge patients battling addiction—and their families—to talk about their experiences in order to expose the truth about the disease, and help others understand the magnitude of the issue Also, they say that although progress has been made in the areas of prevention, diagnosis, and treatment, these efforts simply have not matched the breadth of the problem. And finally, they point out that addicts must overcome stigma, which is greater than other mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety and leads to silence about the opioid epidemic.
And finally, an op-ed in the Baltimore Sun looks at the growing market for legal adult-use medical marijuana, pointing out that medical cannabis is not really a medication just because states say so. Unlike medications sold in a pharmacy, which comes in plain bottles and has specific instructions on how to use it and what the side effects might be, medical marijuana is dispensed by a “budtender” who has no way to assess possible reactions or warn about potential interactions. In the end, the article notes, the patient is largely left to determine for themselves what constitutes a reasonable medication regimen and dosage that will both treat their ailments and not develop into dependency. As legalization of medical cannabis continues, amid increasingly far-reaching claims about what it does, we need more research into the effects of the drug—as well as tighter regulation of how it is sold and what it purports to do.