Generally, they're making things worse. After finally getting around to dealing with doctors over-prescribing powerful opioids, they just shut down the legal su

Generally, they're making things worse. After finally getting around to dealing with doctors over-prescribing powerful opioids, they just shut down the legal supply. Now all those patients, many of whom are addicted because they've been taking chewable heroin for months or years, have to kick one of the toughest addictions known to medical science. On top of that, they're back to dealing with the back/knee/etc pain that caused them to start taking opioids in the first place. It's no surprise that many of them simply can't do it, and thus turn to a VERY thriving black market. The DEA gets involved again, and now those people hooked on pain meds given to them by their doctor are in the legal cross-hairs because they're buying the same shit from somebody who illegally imported it from Mexico or China. This is not a new problem in America. It's been an issue in the past. First it was morphine after the civil war, then it was Bayer-brand Heroin (which was marketed as a non-addictive morphine substitute) after WW1. Every time somebody gets the bright idea to restrict an opioid because of how many addicts it creates, they never seem to have an answer to the follow-up question - what do we do with the addicts? Then we are collectively shocked about the size of the black market afterwards.