Ep. 028: Blame the Government, Not Purdue Pharma

The opioid crisis is back in the news with the death of actor Michael K. Williams. West Virginia is even suing Purdue Pharma over its role in the opioid crisis. However, today's guest, Jacob Rich, a drug, tobacco, and healthcare analyst with the Reason Foundation and Senior Contributor with Young Voices, says that the majority of the blame should be placed on the government. Join Garrett & Jacob for today's episode of Forgotten America as they discuss the history of the opioid crisis, government's role in exacerbating it, policies that can alleviate the crisis, and predictions about the future.    You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @jacobjamesrich   You can read his research at reason.com - here is his article on medication assisted therapies (MAT) and current federal policy https://reason.com/2021/02/02/biden-restores-a-barrier-to-opioid-addiction-treatment/    Statistics on the opioid crisis from the CDC https://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/deaths/index.html    Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration's guidelines on MAT https://www.samhsa.gov/medication-assisted-treatment/practitioner-resources/faqs    Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs: Effects on Opioid Prescribing and Drug Overdose Mortality by Jacob Rich and Robert Capodilupo https://reason.org/policy-study/prescription-drug-monitoring-programs-effects-on-opioid-prescribing-and-drug-overdose-mortality/   ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------   You can support the Cardinal Institute by donating or following us on social media:    Donate: www.cardinalinstitute.com/donate Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cardinalinstitute Newsletter: www.cardinalinstitute.com/contact YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCosCMp86mjLbf8ZWfE5yS7Q Twitter: @CardinalWV Facebook: /CardinalInstitute/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cardinal-institute-for-wv-policy/ Instagram: @teamcardinalwv