> In the late 1990s, pharmaceutical companies reassured the medical community that patients would not become addicted to opioid pain relievers and healthcare pr

> In the late 1990s, pharmaceutical companies reassured the medical community that patients would not become addicted to opioid pain relievers and healthcare providers began to prescribe them at greater rates. > Increased prescription of opioid medications led to widespread misuse of both prescription and non-prescription opioids before it became clear that these medications could indeed be highly addictive. I assumed this was well-known. https://www.hhs.gov/opioids/about-the-epidemic/index.html https://www.hhs.gov/opioids/about-the-epidemic/index.html