Coal mining culture and the opioid crisis

"For me, my own personal stories of opioid patients come to mind, including one who keyed my car when I stopped prescribing his opioid after an acute injury. I think of some local opioid overdose deaths in my community. I would love to hear what other doctors and clinicians have to say about these issues, like the 'not responsible' verdict and the Sackler family running away liability-free and still worth billions of dollars. Does anybody feel like the opioid companies were pushy in the '90s and 2000s? Were they in the right? Is the California ruling in line with the common good? Are our prescribing practices under scrutiny? What runs through our heads right now, doctors? I would love to know."

Rebecca Thaxton is a family physician.

She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "The people vs. opioid pharma: Pharma wins again."

Reflect and earn 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CME for this episode.