Read Henry Miller’s Latest at Issues and Insights
July 26, 2019
Issues and Insights
Opioids: Bad Science, Bad Policy, Bad Outcomes
By Henry I. Miller, M.S., M.D. and Josh Bloom
There’s an old joke about the drunk who’s hunting for his lost keys under the lamppost, not because he thinks they’re there, but because the light is good. Well, that’s what the feds and state governments are doing to try to quell the epidemic of opioid addiction and overdoses.
The problem is quite real, but legislators and regulators are making incorrect assumptions and adopting flawed strategies. And then, there are some flawed clinical studies and statements by the U.S. surgeon general that conspire to create misunderstanding of the landscape.