A (brief) history of the opioid crisis

Would you believe this isn’t the first time our nation has dealt with an opioid crisis?

Heroin was introduced by doctors and pharmacists after the Civil War as a remedy to soldiers who were addicted to morphine. By the 1960s and 1970s, addiction was rampant, and doctors began refusing opioids to all patients, even those suffering with cancer and intractable diseases.

As we battle our current opioid addiction crisis, it’s important to remember the past, how the pendulum has swung and the ramifications of each extreme. We must invest in technologies and therapies that help our patients for the future.

– Tarun Jolly, M.D.