The drug OxyContin and the need for Purdue Pharmacy to step forward and do more than they have has made the news again – this time in Ravenna County, Ohio. Carlos Brown and his wife, Brenda, have just been sentenced to five years in prison for drug dealing. Mr. Brown apparently became addicted to OxyContin when he was prescribed the painkiller following a car accident. The saddest part of this is that it all could have been avoided had Mr. Brown used drug detox and drug rehab to get off the drug instead of becoming a drug dealer to support his habit.

Carlos Brown, is 77 years old. His wife is 54. Mr. Brown said that once he became addicted to OxyContin, he found out how to buy the drug wholesale. He then started selling it to pay for his $3600 a month habit.

Obviously drug dealing under any circumstances deserves jail time, but the addictive nature of OxyContin does lead to bad decisions. Without knowing if Mr. Brown has had earlier run-ins with the law, I do wonder if this sentence is a bit harsh for a 77-year-old man – and it doesn’t even look like he’s going to get a chance to do a drug rehab program.

Mr. Brown told the judge, “Brenda and me are not bad people. We just made bad choices.” OxyContin addiction will certainly put you in that position. Mr. Brown stated the drugs were controlling his life, not an uncommon description of being addicted to OxyContin.

The Portage County Drug Task Force had a chance to take out the wholesaler who was supplying drugs to the Browns, but it’s unclear from the article what they did about it.

Also, could they look any deeper to see if Cardinal Health was the distributor? Or if Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer, could have done anything to stop this drug dealing?

Did any salesperson from the distributor or the manufacturer receive any bonuses for sales quotas reached in the territory covered by Mr. Brown’s wholesaler? How was it even possible for Mr. Brown to purchase prescription drugs wholesale?

Prescription drug addiction and dependency is a growing problem with more and more lives being affected.

Drug Rehab Referral can help you find a drug rehab program for yourself, a family member or even a friend if you are seeing any signs of Oxycontin addiction - or addiction to any other prescription drugs.

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