Overdose of Prescription Meds are Largest Cause of Accidental Death in the U.S.

Lakeland, FL (Law Firm Newswire) August 28, 2015 – Overdosing on legitimate prescriptions or pill mill doctor prescriptions such as oxycodone, hydrocodone and oxymorphone now account for the single largest cause of accidental death in the U.S. Once only prescribed for the terminally ill, opiods have become an everyday tool for pain management.

“Statistics from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) reveal that more Americans die from prescription drug overdoses for painkillers than from other street drugs, such as heroine or cocaine,” said noted Lakeland criminal defense attorney, Thomas Grajek.

In fact, the CDC statistics also show that opiods are the main reason for 500,000 E.R. visits every year and at least 15,000 deaths. Prescription painkillers now take the lives of more people than car accidents, and there are over 8.8 million people in America on chronic opoid therapy.

Although they are a valuable tool for patients, opiods have become a misused and abused weapon in the fight against pain. They have a dark back story of being sold for 10 times their pharmaceutical price on the black market. Surprisingly, there is no one subgroup of the population that abuses them more than others. Users often include the elderly, wounded veterans, middle-aged and young adults.

Addiction does not happen right away. It evolves over time, often starting with a legitimate prescription from a doctor. After a patient stops using opiods for medical purposes and begins using them frequently for pleasure, what often occurs is they begin doctor shopping and eventually end up accessing them on the black market. In the black market are clinics referred to as pill mills, where doctors provide a cursory examination and hand out prescriptions for opioids. In Florida, they are an enormous problem that law enforcement is working to shut down.

Oxycodone caused 1,516 overdose deaths in Florida in 2010, which translates to an average of four deaths a day. Such overdoses are increasing every year.

It is important to remember that even if someone has been arrested at a pill mill, it does not automatically mean they are guilty of an offense. Being in the wrong place at the wrong time is not, in and of itself, a crime.

“Even alleged drug traffickers are entitled to a criminal defense; and as astonishing as it may sound, some may not even be guilty of a crime for a variety of reasons, ranging from mistaken identity to tainted evidence,” Grajek said. “Anyone faced with a trafficking charge needs a good criminal defense attorney, immediately.”