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Story shows drug dangers

To the Editor,

I was astonished to see on the national evening news a detailed and extensive pictorial account of the drug overdose events in East Liverpool, and also as a story in the local newspapers.

Everyone should view this video, and I would personally like to thank the Officer Kevin Thompson and the city of East Liverpool for their frankness and ability to involve the media in this important report of two adults who were shooting up while driving and with a child in the back of the car. Thompson stated it was important to show these pictures to educate the public. I agree. The pair became impaired to the point of passing out and almost hitting other children traveling in a school bus. The graphic pictures are striking examples of the dangers of injecting heroin, which recently has become increasingly dangerous, due to mixing of even more powerful drugs into the substances sold on the street.

Carfentanil is such an additive and is an opiate elephant tranquilizer, recently becoming responsible for deaths locally. As many as 10 percent of all West Virginia newborns exhibit neonatal abstinence syndrome addiction to narcotics at birth. There were about 34 drug overdose deaths per 100,000 West Virginia residents from 2011 through 2013, up dramatically from 22 deaths per 100,000 people in 2007-09. West Virginia’s drug overdose death rate was more than double the national average at around 37 per 100,000 citizens, and far surpasses the second-highest state, New Mexico, which was at 28.2 deaths per 100,000. The national average was 13.4.

It is time to recognize the dangers of this epidemic effect everyone, including innocent children. Anyone aware of sellers and users should actively report any such individuals to police. We as a society cannot continue to allow the death and dangers to continue. It is time to implement laws and start screening all arrested individuals for the presence of illegal or illegally used drugs to combat the epidemic. The numbers of addiction specialists must be increased to provide drugs known to curtail addiction in those wishing to stop. Social programs must address the reality that addicts require months to allow brain transmitters to return to normal and continual support to remain drug free.

Options to get clean must be afforded along with alternatives that include long-term incarceration and transfer to work programs with lifelong drug screening to clean up addicts. Social services designed to help addicts must be augmented with boot camps as undesirable alternatives, to provide incentives to remain clean, especially for the repeat offenders. Addiction is a long-term problem with support and punishment available to insure the safety of the population at large!

Prescription narcotics are not inherently safe either. The belief that “How can prescription drugs prescribed by doctors be deadly?” is simply no longer tenable or even reasonable, after the deaths of Michael Jackson and Prince at the hands of physicians. Don’t try this at home. Most of the prescription drugs in overdoses are not prescribed.

Dr. Paul Martin Kempen

President, Hancock

County Medical Society

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