HOW U.S. SURGEON GENERAL VIVEK MURTHY SENDS URGENT LETTER TO EVERY DOCTOR IN AMERICA: (Heroin Epidemic) (2103 hits)
America's doctor just knocked on the doors of every single US physician across the country.
Virtually, at least. On Thursday, US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy sent this letter™÷ to 2.3 million American doctors asking for their help to curb what's being called an "unprecedented" epidemic™÷ of opioid painkiller overdose deaths.
It's the first time in history that a Surgeon General has sent a letter directly to American physicians.
This is a major signal to doctors and the public that it's time for something to be done about the thousands of Americans who are dying each year from overdosing on prescription painkillers like oxycodone, fentanyl, and morphine.
Between 2013 and 2014, deaths from synthetic opioids skyrocketed by 79%, according to a new CDC report released Thursday™÷.
Since opioid painkillers slow breathing and act on the same brain systems as heroin, they carry serious risks™÷ of overdose and, in rarer cases, addiction™÷. But cases that would normally be rare are happening with increasing regularity as the drugs are being given to so many people. Despite being home to just 5% of the world's population, America consumes 80% of its opioids™÷.
These drugs are powerful. Fentanyl, the drug that killed Prince, is roughly 50 times stronger than pure heroin. And although the deadly drug is legal with a doctor's prescription, it's also being made illegally in underground labs and traded across the US.
