Okay. We’ve finally got some numbers here. Over 7 million people in the U.S. abused prescription drugs in 2007. More than cocaine, heroin, hallucinogens, Ecstasy, and inhalants (which includes, for some reason, marijuana) combined. That figure was less than 4 million in the year 2000. That’s prescription drug addiction on the ‘illegal’ end of things. But those numbers don’t even come close to the ‘legal’ numbers.

From 1995 to 2005, the number of people treated for abuse of prescription painkillers increased by 321 percent. And every year 180 million legal prescriptions are written for painkillers every year. That’s amazing. If only one prescription went to each person, about 1/2 the population of the U.S. would be taking what is basically heroin.

Let me see. A 40 mg OxyContin pill costs just under $6 for a legitimate prescription. If each of the prescriptions written was a two week’s supply - let’s say 42 pills - the drug manufacturer would make about $45 billion. 

If that’s not a vested interest in prescription drug addiction, I don’t know what is. With that kind of incentive, you can be sure the drugs are designed to make you want to keep taking them.

How does it happen. Read U.S. grapples with rising prescription drug addiction. Then refuse to take the drugs or give them to your kids unless it’s a life-threatening situation. And if it’s already too late for that, get anyone you know who’s taking them into a drug addiction treatment center.

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