This has been circulating on social media lately and it is driving me crazy! Comparing Narcan and chemotherapy makes zero sense; it is like
comparing apples and oranges. Narcan is an emergency life-saving
medication that can reverse the effects of an overdose. It is not a
long-term treatment as is chemotherapy so to compare the two is absurd.
This misleading oversimplification almost makes it appear that the cost
of chemotherapy could be covered by what is spent on Narcan, which is simply not the case.
With over 33,000 opioid-related deaths a year in the U.S.¹ it is time for us as a society to become educated on addiction and end the stigma that surrounds it. A good place to start is to watch this video which shows how addiction affects the brain and will literally take less than two minutes of your time.
Then check out Lost: A Special Report that takes a look at 60 of the 650 overdose deaths in Maine in just the last two years. You can also share and subscribe to this blog which I will use to connect with others who are working to end the stigma surrounding addiction. I will also share my own experience as I work the steps as an "affected loved one" & Nar-Anon member.
"Negative attitudes and ways of talking about substance misuse and substance use disorders can be entrenched, but is possible to change social attitudes. This has been done many times in the past: Cancer and HIV used to be surrounded by fear and judgment, now they are regarded by many as simply medical conditions. This has helped people become comfortable talking about their concerns with their doctors, widening access to prevention and treatment. By coming together as a society with the resolve to do so, it is similarly possible to change attitudes toward substance misuse and substance use disorders."²
¹Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Drug Overdose Death Data https://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/data/statedeaths.html
²Surgeon General's Report on Alcohol, Drugs, and Health: Executive
Summary https://addiction.surgeongeneral.gov/executive-summary
