9781422282519

12 OPIOIDS: HEROIN, OXYCONTIN, AND PAINKILLERS

in and day out, you see the decline of people on drugs,” Steele told The Boston Globe . “Some are just waiting to die.”

OPIATE OVERLOAD

Opiates and opioids were the primary type of drug responsible for the tragedies in Bell County. Opiates are drugs derived from natural opium, which comes from the poppy plant. They include morphine, codeine, and most heroin. Opioids, on the other hand, are like opiates in their effects, but they are artificially made. OxyContin is an opioid. Some heroin is synthetic , and so is

technically an opioid rather than an opiate. Due to all the overlap, the term opioid is also used as an umbrella term that can refer to both synthetic and naturally derived substances. Unfortunately, what is happening in Bell County is mirrored in communities across the United States and around the world. During the past 20 years, an emerging opioid epidemic has caused politicians, police, doctors, and others to take notice. For example, the problem became so acute in Vermont that Governor Peter Shumlin

Seed pods of the opium poppy.