The problem, of course, is the misuse. Either by doctors who misprescribe (chronic pain relief is a common use case for opioids, and probably an exceptionally

The problem, of course, is the misuse. Either by doctors who misprescribe (chronic pain relief is a common use case for opioids, and probably an exceptionally bad one), patients who misuse or abuse, and marketing companies like Purdue who push for profit. The question, to me, is this: where do we balance benefits/freedoms from overall harm? This is also the crux of many issues like alcohol abuse, gun rights, etc. Is it more harmful for the government to intervene than to not attempt to legislate away the source of the problem, at the cost of losing something valued by people in the society?