As I wrote in a
very long post here on the futility of using our criminal laws as a response to drug use and addiction, if heroin use is indeed rising due to it being a cheaper and readily available substitute for pain pills, the answer seems clear: End the war on pain pills. Let people use them. At least they won't turn to heroin, and die shooting up in a bathroom because the drug they obtained through the black market contained a lethal combination of substances.
Oxycontin and pain meds aren't causing heroin deaths. It is the criminalization of pain meds and prosecution of the doctors who prescribe them, putting them in short supply compared to demand, that is leading users to seek alternatives, which often can be deadly.
The restrictions on pain pills and resulting increased demand for heroin has also led to increased production of heroin, especially in Mexico.
The U.S. has fewer meth labs since the restrictions on pseudoephedrine were ushered in. But people didn't stop using meth, the production just shifted to Mexico, and the finished product is now shipped here in larger quantities to accommodate demand.
Prohibition perpetuates the black market. It increases profits for foreign producers and suppliers of illegal substances. By contrast, legalization of marijuana in Colorado and other states has put a big crimp in profits of Mexican marijuana growers and suppliers, resulting in less production and less pot being shipped to the U.S. The War on Drugs gets everything backwards. There's a lesson here, if any lawmakers care to examine it.
As for the numbers in the report, take them with a grain of salt. For one thing, they are based on self-reported data.
This study is subject to several limitations. First, NSDUH data are self-reported, and their value depends on the truthfulness and accuracy of individual respondents; under- or over-reporting might occur. Second, because the survey is cross-sectional and different individuals were sampled each year, it is not possible to infer causality from the observed associations. Third, because NSDUH only captures noninstitutionalized civilians, it excludes active duty military personnel, homeless and incarcerated populations, and persons in residential substance abuse treatment programs. Therefore, the drug use estimates in this study might not be generalizable to the total U.S. population, particularly for estimates of uncommonly used drugs like heroin.....
