Big Tech aims to help those struggling with substance use, as startups in the new field of addiction tech attract investment and look for ways to aid in drug treatment and rehab. Dozens of addiction telemedicine startups already exist, offering consultations with a physician to obtain addiction medications, and many provide virtual rehab with digital cognitive behavior treatment through connected devices, peer support, and coaching, and even include mail-in urine tests to monitor compliance with sobriety. With more than 100,000 overdose doses during the past 12 months, it’s not surprising that Silicon Valley is turning its attention to addiction and overdose to gain a foothold in a potential $40 billion market for addiction-related products and treatment. But many experts say that while these may be helpful to some patients, flashy technology is not geared to expanding treatment options for the less privileged, and will never be able to reach those in the throes of addiction who are often on the wrong side of the digital divide and face issues such as lack of housing and low incomes.
Meanwhile, overdoses are spiking nationwide among the incarcerated, with drug deaths in Tennessee, for example, jumping more than eightfold in prisons in just the past two years. Nearly half were from the highly potent synthetic opioid fentanyl, which is circulating widely in correctional institutions. Until recently, fatal overdoses in Tennesse prisons were rare, but in the last two years at least 68 people have died from drugs in both state-run and for-profit facilities. Unfortunately, one of the most proven therapies for addiction, medication-assisted treatment (MAT), is nearly impossible to access in Tennesee prisons, with only five people in custody receiving MAT among 20,000 individuals in prison.
And finally, as the use of psychedelic drugs becomes more mainstream, fueling the growth of a retreat industry offering expensive treatments with hallucinogens, scientists say that the venom of a toad used in such therapies is putting the species at risk of population collapse. In a sign of the unintended consequences of the psychedelic resurgence, there is concern that the scramble to use the secretions of the Sonoran desert toads could lead to poaching, over-harvesting, and illegal trafficking. When the toad is threatened, it excretes toxins strong enough to kill a full-grown dog; a substance in those toxins can be dried into crystals and smoked in a pipe, producing an intense psychedelic experience. Like all such substances, these are powerful drugs with the potential to treat disorders such as depression and PTSD, but caution is advised as we are only just starting to research their full impact and whether they are safe and effective as a treatment.