Dear editor:
We're being lied to!
I'm watching the news and they're talking about the opioid problem. One of the reporters explained how unfair it is to deny pain relief to those who suffer pain, when pain relief is available. By order of the U.S. government, the medical profession will hardly prescribe pain pills to hurting citizens.
My wife cries daily from tremendous pain after seven back surgeries. They tell us daily that opioids are killing people and the truth is that fentanyl, which is categorized as an opioid is responsible for almost all deaths that are blamed on opioid pain pills. Most of the people who take pain pills have never heard of fentanyl! However, the pain pills are taking all the blame for the problem! Why don't they attack the real problem?
We're being lied to and the government is behind it! Why? President Trump went on television and promised to stop the use of opioid painkillers! Is that the president's job? Oh, did I mention that fentanyl is the problem?
Massachusetts state report: "Fentanyl involved in 89 percent of opioid overdose deaths!"
We're beginning to look more like the Russkies every day. If you want a mess, just let the government become involved. Our medical care is being legislated by government and I don't think I'm alone in the thought that the government should get out of our private lives! The government has access to unlimited television exposure with which they can sell their propaganda.
The government thinks it's OK for a patient to drink a half gallon of booze or buy a medical marijuana card to control pain, but to allow that person to take a few pain pills each day is a horrible thing, even though they are safe to use as prescribed. More people die from alcohol abuse, are they going to outlaw booze? Swimming pools kill many more than opioids ... are they going to outlaw pools? Buttered cornbread is mighty fattening, obesity kills! Booze, swimming pools or buttered cornbread kill far more people than opioids!
There's an underlying reason for this government campaign, you can bet on it! I thought President Trump was going to drive down drug costs, instead, drugs are going higher.
Recently "they" have decided that people with PTSD or anxiety issues (whether military related or not) should not be allowed a drug to help them, even though the person has a prescription and the drug is safe to use. That particular drug is called Alprazolam and if not abused is very safe.
Mr. President: you have plenty on your plate, why not build your wall and let responsible citizens get to sleep without tremendous pain?
An issue that affects so many lives should be handled with more care. When the medical profession is run by politicians in Washington, D.C., it's time to drain the swamp with vigor.
Darryl Foshee
Hot Springs
Editorial on 09/09/2018