Overdoses mostly occur as a consequence of ignorance, of the substance being used, if it's cut or "spiced up" deliberately with fentanyl or other potent analogu

Overdoses mostly occur as a consequence of ignorance, of the substance being used, if it's cut or "spiced up" deliberately with fentanyl or other potent analogues, and of the consequences of misuse. Drugs are used by regular people, in public, in open view, in reasonable doses, and people behave normally enough that you wouldn't expect them to have an opiate buzz, or to be high on amphetamines, up to and including meth. Responsible drug users have prescriptions, or rigorously test their drugs, and educate themselves about the effects, dosages, cumulative limits over time, emergency responses, supplementation and hydration, and so on. When the user is educated and the substance is pure, overdoses are very rare. Tylenol overdose results in acute liver damage, among other things. 100k calls per year are made to poison control hotlines regarding Tylenol, with over half that number being hospitalized. Overdoses are caused by ignorance, the stigma that prevents harm reduction education, and the war on drugs allowing mystery substances to proliferate in black markets. Provide real drug education in high school and overdoses and addiction will plummet. End the war on drugs, legalize everything, but require pharmacy distribution and yearly per-substance licensing and mandated education, and most drug problems will go away. The remainder should be treated as health care, under the auspices of doctors and caregivers. Go to Walgreens and get your crack license renewed. Or your lsd, dmt, and shrooms license before hitting burning man.