Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine (R), whose office has focused on the heroin epidemic, said he was astonished at how easily pill addicts made the switch.“There used to be some psychological barrier to heroin,” DeWine said. “That barrier is gone today.”I don't know what the number is, but I suspect the number is a lot higher than the AG's office would care to admit; there are people who had to switch to heroin because of efforts to hamper illegal distribution of prescription drugs that effected and affected patients with legitimate need to control their pain.
Don't get me wrong, I applaud the AG for dealing with an out of control problem, but I fear that in the zealousness and righteousness of taking prescription drugs off the streets we may have gone too far and pushed people who would otherwise have stayed with their doctor's planned prescriptions on to illegal narcotics.
The article is about trafficking, but DeWine's point was important enough that I felt compelled to speak about. Maybe I'm wrong about this entirely or not at all, I don't know; but it sure would be reassuring to hear from our government that they are at least aware of the problem of their own causing.
