As the U.S. grapples with the nation-wide opioid abuse epidemic, pharmaceutical companies are seizing on the opportunity to expand profits by providing medications to relieve the negative side effects of other drugs, according to The Washington Post.
Prescriptions for opioid painkillers have catapulted from 112 million in 1992 to nearly 249 million in 2015, according to the report. Statistics from the CDC show more than 165,000 people in the U.S. died from opioid overdoses between 1999 and 2014.
The drug industry's response to the crisis has been more drugs. With six in 10 American adults taking prescription drugs, the market for side-effect relieving medications is substantial. One prevalent example consumers will likely recognize from advertisements includes drugs to treat opioid-induced constipation, such as Movantik and Relistor.
There is also Suboxone, funded and promoted by the U.S. government as a safer alternative for methadone for people trying to wean dependence on opioids. There is also naloxone, an emergency drug used to treat overdoses.
Drugmakers use the "expansion opportunity" that exists in the "opioid use disorders population" to entice investors, and analysts estimate that the addiction, overdose and side effects submarkets are each worth $1 billion in annual sales, according to the report. Experts say these economics fundamentally oppose efforts to remedy the epidemic.