The United States of opioids: a prescription for liberating a nation in pain
Description
Author Harry Nelson has been on the front lines of behavioral health and medical advocacy for 2 decades. He is the leading healthcare legal expert in the country addressing the worsening problems in how we treat pain and addiction. His insights have earned the attention of lead policymakers and regulators at every federal agency touching the opioid crisis. He has been one of the few voices in the room with direct experience of where we are going wrong. Read The United States of Opioids to join his campaign to stop talking about and start doing something about out-of-control overdose death rates, addiction, and chronic pain.The United States of Opioids explains: •why coverage of greedy drug companies and doctors has been reductive, missing the real story, shortchanging the American public and impeding progress; •the structural roots of the crisis in multiple points of health system failure •why healthcare industry and government efforts will never be enough to tackle the crisis; •how grassroots action can force a new conversation about the parallel crisis of rising suicide rates •why the opioid crisis, including spiraling overdose death rates, will continue to worsen until we take on root causes, including rising rates of anxiety, social isolation, chronic stress, and despair •practical steps we can take to address the opioid crisis. The United States of Opioids tells the real story of what went wrong. It offers a roadmap out of the crisis that empowers and offers practical resources for people, families, employers, and communities to connect, prevent, and intervene in addiction, chronic pain and the rising death toll. Harry’s call to action has resonated and is leading to new conversations across America, including: •how religious communities can play a pivotal role in taking on the opioid crisis •how employers and employees can re-imagine workplace wellness in ways that detoxify the American workplace and lead to healthier workforce, with less stress and anxiety at work •how all of us can rethink what wellness means in our own lives and social circles to become more self-aware, more conscious of hidden shame and judgment that fuels substance abuse, and agents of prevention and intervention •how parents and schools can rethink our approach to early and elementary education to raise a generation of more resilient kids who are less prone to the plague of distress and substance use infecting middle schools and teens across America •how people can share their addiction and recovery journeys to inspire others and make a difference in the opioid crisis
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Published Reviews
Kirkus Book Review
Health care attorney Nelson (From ObamaCare to TrumpCare, 2017) provides an in-depth historical and analytical overview of the opioid crisis in America and suggests wide-ranging solutions. For decades, the United States has been ravaged by opioid addictiona problem that's escalated to epidemic proportions. Nelson traces its historical arc from the late 19th century through the passage of significant legislation, such as the Harrison Narcotics Tax Act in 1914, and the creation of the Drug Enforcement Administration in 1973. The author goes on to present a synoptic account of the problem's growth in the 1990s, when OxyContin and fentanyl became the most popular opioids, and of how inadequate responses from law enforcement, physicians, and the pharmacological industry only exacerbated the crisis. The author asserts that a new emphasis on the treatment of pain, dubbed the "fifth vital sign," contributed to systemic failures into the present day, as did the insurance industry's preference for cheaper (though more addictive) drugs and a woeful lack of knowledge and training on the parts of physicians. Nelson also lays blame on what he sees as an overall moral diminishment in America: "We cannot fully address the opioid crisis without seeking to understand this broader crisis of human sufferingthe byproduct of a culture of chronic stress, trauma, and increasing isolation as a result of technology and the erosion of social support in our communities." The author insightfully articulates a plan of reform"seven pillars" of public health that include establishing outreach and prevention programs, providing more access to addiction treatment, and developing stronger law enforcement responses to the opioid black market. Nelson has a quarter-century of experience as a health care lawyer, and his extraordinary expertise in on full display here. Over the course of his book, he refreshingly furnishes a kaleidoscopic account of the many causes of the opioid crisis rather than launching a political jeremiad that demonizes a particular group. Along the way, he consistently delves into complex matters with sensitivity. This tendency is particularly evident in his discussion of the virtues and vices of cannabis. A remarkably thorough and always sensible study. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.