** TLDR: the opioid epidemic is engineered to make profits for big pharma. Their pain pills cause opioid addiction. Then they conspired to increase the price of naloxone and lobby for the gov to buy the drug. Naloxone is the drug that stops overdoses. Heroin production has increased due to the US invading Afghanistan increasing the number of addicts and the supply of the drug **

Six pharmaceutical executives who worked for fentanyl company Insys Therapeutics, including a former CEO, were arrested on Thursday and charged with leading a nationwide conspiracy to defraud insurance companies and bribe doctors to prescribe their powerful and addictive opioid painkiller, according to an indictment from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Massachusetts. http://fusion.net/story/374764/insys-executives-arrested-fentanyl/

This relates to an issue Bernie was worried about in 2015:

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is calling on state governments to work to lower the price of a drug used to treat heroin overdoes.

The liberal presidential candidate challenging Hillary Clinton has joined Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, in pressing for action in what they say is a public health emergency.

“The opioid abuse epidemic is a public health emergency that must be addressed, and no company should jeopardize the progress many states have made in tackling this emergency by overcharging for a critically important drug like naloxone,” the lawmakers wrote http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/247659-sanders-pushes-for-lower-price-for-heroin-overdose-drug

There seems to be money flowing into the Clinton Foundation from big pharma. The CEOs are donating to Hillary's campaign. On the campaign trail I've seen Bill Clinton name drop the drug naloxone. The recent emails on wikileaks confirms that the one of the goals of the Clinton Foundation is to make this drug be everywhere. One of the manufactures of this drug is Hospira, a company recently bought by Pfizer.

Naloxone’s rise to prominence has been good for its manufacturers, Amphastar Pharmaceuticals and Pfizer PFE -0.06% , which both doubled the price over the past two years. (Three other companies, Mylan MYL -2.65% , Kaléo, and Adapt Pharma, also recently entered the market.) But more significant: It saved 8,000 people from an overdose last year—a number that’s growing fast. http://fortune.com/2015/12/08/narcan-opioid-heroin-drug-overdose/

There seems to be serious conflicts on interest. been the campaign and the companies. For example Clinton wants to give these campaigns 7.5 billion dollars through federal programs. This is an OP-Ed from Hillary from last year:

Today I’m releasing a strategy to confront the drug and alcohol addiction crisis. My plan sets five goals: empower communities to prevent drug use among teenagers; ensure every person suffering from addiction can obtain comprehensive treatment; ensure that all first responders carry naloxone, which can stop overdoses from becoming fatal; require health care providers to receive training in recognizing substance use disorders and to consult a prescription drug monitoring program before prescribing controlled substances; and prioritize treatment over prison for low-level and nonviolent drug offenders, so we can end the era of mass incarceration. http://www.unionleader.com/article/20150901/OPINION02/150909909/1004/opinion

Despite the drug not being under patent, there is still a virtual monopoly on the manufacturing of the drug. The allows the 2 or 3 companies making the drug to raise praises for no reason

In an emailed statement today, Amphastar CFO Bill Peters said, the company's price for naloxone was less than competitors.

"Indeed, our price for naloxone after the increase is still the lowest among similar products in the United States. The fact that we have the lowest naloxone price is all the more remarkable because it is sold in a pre-filled syringe associated with a higher manufacturing cost. On average, the price of naloxone in the U.S. market (in vial form) is $37.23 per milligram, or 226% of the price of Amphastar's naloxone (in a prefilled syringe) when considering the price per milligram of naloxone. With all of this in mind, I am confident that we can assist Ohio in a similar way that we did with New York as we are committed to public safety."

In making his request, DeWine pointed to $6-per-dose rebate that Amphastar this month agreed to pay back to New York, an agreement that also protects the state against wholesale price increases for a year. According to The New York Times, that rebate was sought after police departments in the state, as well as across the country, began complaining that price increases were limiting their ability to save lives. In Georgia, for one, the price rose from about $20 a dose to $35 to $40 a dose. Health officials in Baltimore have been handing out kits containing naloxone to relatives and friends of people where there were concerns of overdoses but has had to limit that to 2,000 from 3,600 in the face of price increases.

The company, which went public last year, reported 9-month revenues of about $155 million and an operating loss of nearly $11 million for three quarters. It did not break out sales of naloxone in its last filing but said the drug was having "increased sales." Amphastar is not the only company to be caught in the cross-hairs of public sentiment for raising prices of the overdose drug. The Clinton Foundation last month said it had negotiated a discount with Kaléo for the naloxone autoinjector it makes. Rain Henderson, CEO of the Clinton Health Matters Initiative, wouldn't name the price but told the Times it would make it available to any institution that can distribute it widely. The foundation has approached other naloxone makers but Kaléo was the first to respond.

http://www.fiercepharma.com/sales-and-marketing/amphastar-pays-some-rebates-after-price-of-overdose-drug-doubles

Clinton seems more concerned about providing drugs to treat overdoses, rather than combating the over use of opioids in the US medical system or seriously helping people battling addiction.

What is interesting about her plan to make naloxone widespread, is that it lines the pockets of her donors, while reducing the number of deaths from overdoses. This plan could change this statistic, without changing the number of addicts in various communities. It wouldn't solve an addicts problems, just makes their habits less deadly.

I was wondering if if someone here with more experience at looking at campaign donations could find anything illegal. It seems highly suspicious to me that you can take millions of dollars of money from companies, and then name drop their products in Op-eds and speeches while campaigning. There are different ways this problem could be solved, such as developing non-addictive pain medication. However, a Clinton administration and the Clinton foundation want to push a band-aid solution on this opioid addiction epidemic; this of course increases the money that flows into their donor's pockets. I think this is one of the easiest cases of Clinton being influenced by campaign contributions and Clinton Foundation donations.

I've continued to dig and I have found something extremely interesting. I was having trouble linking Hillary Clinton to the Pfizer's Super Pac, but Pfizer has been extremely active this year, giving thousands of dollars to Democrats. I started to cross reference the Democrats they give money too with the list of Democratic Ssuperdelegates. Here are the links I'm using: Pzifer's PAC: https://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/pacgot.php?cycle=2016&cmte=C00016683

Hospira Inc's PAC (they are owned by Pzifer: https://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/pacgot.php?cycle=2016&cmte=C00433284

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Democratic_Party_superdelegates,_2016

It appears that Pfizer gives money to superdelegates who then pledge their vote to Hillary. I think there needs to be some serious analysis of the money going to superdegelates; it is probably far more cost effective to get a candidate via superdegelates than it is to donated to Hillary directly.

Update:

The access of this drug is now being more widely available, in Florida for example:

First responders in Florida have administered naloxone for years. But under a measure approved by the Legislature this year, patients and their families can now quickly get the drug from a pharmacy. Naloxone, sold under the brand name Narcan, isn't available over the counter. But patients and their families no longer have to get an individual prescription from a doctor to access the drug. Instead, they can purchase an autoinjector or intranasal version of naloxone through their pharmacists if the pharmacy receives a so-called blanket "standing order" from a doctor. "This gives better access to patients who didn't have that access before," said Michael Jackson, executive vice president and CEO of the Florida Pharmacy Association. "This medication can save lives." http://www.tampabay.com/news/health/medicine/overdose-reversal-drug-naloxone-now-available-in-florida-without-an/2286681

At the DNC it was even talked about: https://youtu.be/_yK8PPYsBJM?t=203

At the DNC they drop the name Narcan. If Hilllary becomes president watch the price of this drug skyrocket further!

Some Senators are fighting this crony-capitalism. Asking why there is a 17-fold increase in the price of some versions of this drug. http://www.mccaskill.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/SCA_Amphastar_6_3_16.pdf

“One concern is that money for naloxone is coming out of the same pot as money for treatment and prevention,” Alison Knopf, editor of Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly. “The costlier it is, the less money for treatment and prevention.” Meanwhile, last February, Kaleo Pharma raised the list price for two single-dose injectors to $3,750, from $750, a price that was set last November, after previously costing $575, according to Truven.

https://www.statnews.com/pharmalot/2016/06/07/naloxone-opioids-heroin-drug-prices/

Current price for two does is about $140, it used to be $4: http://www.goodrx.com/narcan

WIKILEAKS EMAILS SUPPORTS THIS CONSPIRACY The CHIA is getting narcan in highschools, because people overdose on heroin at highschools all the time!

· In continuing coverage of Adapt Pharma and CHMI’s collaboration to offer a free carton of Narcan, a nasal spray that quickly reverses heroin overdose, to all high schools in the U.S., the Philadelphia Inquirerhttp://mobile.philly.com/beta?wss=/philly/education&id=367249101, Lancaster Onlinehttp://lancasteronline.com/news/local/all-pa-schools-to-get-limited-doses-of-heroin-antidote/article_a8d58b5c-c911-11e5-b0ea-3fea81c665e2.html, NBC 10http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/health/Pennsylvania-High-Schools-Narcan-Heroin-Antidote-367331471.html?_osource=SocialFlowFB_PHBrand, and NJ.comhttp://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2016/02/pennsylvania_becomes_first_state_to_provide_school.html wrote about how Pennsylvania will be the first state to supply the live-saving antidote.

https://wikileaks.org/podesta-emails/emailid/701

This aligns with YOUR goal that naloxone be in the toolkit of all first responders Attorney General Healey has expressed concern about the cost of naloxone, and indicated interest in meeting with pharmaceutical companies and public health leaders to push for cheaper nasal naloxone products and to ensure first responders can restock supplies of the medicine.

· Naloxone: YOU set a goal that naloxone, a rescue drug that can prevent overdoses from being fatal, be in the toolkit of all first responders.

On Tuesday September 29, Governor Hassan and state officials gathered to announce a new program in New Hampshire to hand out free naloxone kits –the opioid antidote that can prevent an overdose from becoming fatal – to families and friends of people at risk of an overdose. The New Hampshire legislature recently passed a bill to exempt people from criminal prosecution if they report an overdose and make it easier for the patient to take naloxone, and Governor Hassan is now building an awareness campaign. YOU could mention that you are aware of New Hampshire’s recent decision to expand access to naloxone, and that YOU want it to be more widely available in all states. https://wikileaks.org/podesta-emails/emailid/701

They stated that they want to have naloxone everywhere. They don't want to treat addiction, they want to profit off of it! How much money? Up to a $ 1 Billion dollars!

Fortunately, President Obama understands this -- that's why he is proposing to set aside $1 billion in his budget proposal to address the opioid crisis. Senator Shaheen had earlier this year introduced a bill that I cosponsored calling for $600 million in additional spending for states. https://wikileaks.org/podesta-emails/emailid/3057

This is already passed:

The VA must: (1) maximize the availability to veterans of opioid overdose reversal drugs, such as naloxone; (2) equip each VA pharmacy with such medications for outpatient use; and (3) expand the Overdose Education and Naloxone Distribution program to ensure that veterans receiving VA health care who are at risk of opioid overdose may access such drugs and training on the proper administration of such drugs....

Good Samaritan Assessment Act of 2016 (Sec. 503) The GAO must report on the Office of National Drug Control Policy's review of state and local Good Samaritan laws that exempt from criminal or civil liability any individual who administers an opioid overdose reversal drug or device (e.g., naloxone) or who contacts emergency services providers in response to an overdose.....

Co-Prescribing to Reduce Overdoses Act of 2016 (Sec. 902) HHS may establish a grant program to support prescribing opioid overdose reversal drugs (e.g., naloxone) for patients at an elevated risk of overdose, including patients prescribed an opioid. Grant recipients may use the funds to purchase opioid overdose reversal drugs, establish a program for prescribing such drugs, train health care providers and pharmacists, track patients and outcomes, offset patient cost sharing, conduct community outreach, and connect patients to treatment.

Lali's Law (Sec. 1302) HHS may make grants to states that allow standing orders (documents that allow a person to acquire, dispense, or administer a prescription medication without a person-specific prescription) for opioid overdose reversal drugs (e.g., naloxone). Grants may be used for:

*developing standing orders for opioid overdose reversal drugs for pharmacies,

encouraging pharmacies to dispense drugs pursuant to such a standing order,implementing best practices for prescribing opioids and prescribing and discussing with patients opioid overdose reversal drugs,

*developing training for prescribers to use in educating the public on administration of opioid overdose reversal drugs, and

*educating the public on the availability and public health benefits of opioid overdose reversal drugs. https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-bill/524

More and more laws are being are being written to push the drug naloxone. Like this one sponsored by Hillary's running mate Tim Kaine:

(Sec. 2) This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services to provide information to certain prescribers on best practices for prescribing naloxone for patients receiving chronic opioid therapy or being treated for opioid use disorders. (Naloxone is a prescription drug used to rapidly reverse an overdose of opioids, which are drugs with effects similar to opium, such as heroin and certain pain medications.) The information must be provided to prescribers in federally qualified health centers and the health care facilities of the Indian Health Service. https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-bill/2256?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22Naloxone%22%5D%7D&resultIndex=3

https://twitter.com/timkaine/status/731501659998687232

The compromise legislation also includes language to encourage naloxone co-prescribing in federal health settings. Kaine authored the Co-prescribing Saves Lives Act, a bipartisan bill that would encourage physicians to co-prescribe the life-saving drug Naloxone alongside opioid prescriptions and would make it more widely available in federal health settings. http://www.kaine.senate.gov/press-releases/kaine-statement-on-senate-passage-of-bicameral-compromise-bill-to-fight-opioid-abuse-epidemic

Ten days after posting this, Kaine became Hillary's VP.

This move will allow the manufacturers of narcan to make huge amounts of money for decades to come due to the constant "need" to replace expired drugs for first responders around the country:

According to one report, Baltimore spent $118,236 on naloxone in fiscal year 2016, more than triple the $33,540 the city spent in 2014...

In a rush to head of a growing epidemic of fatal opioid overdoses, many state and local government tapped into emergency funds to get naloxone to their first responders. Or else they took advantage of limited-run programs like the federal government’s Rural Opioid Overdose Reversal Grant Program, which distributed just $1.5 million to 15 communities....

The Department of Health and Human Services announced at the end of August that it will provide up to $11 million to fund the purchase and distribution of naloxone, but only a dozen states will see any of that money....

But naloxone doesn’t last long. In May, the county had to destroy half of its remaining naloxone stores—about 200 of the 900 kits it originally purchased in 2014 from Amphastar—because they had expired.....

A number of other police departments rely on money seized during drug investigations to fund their naloxone programs. And in July, a judge in Pittsburgh took the unusual step of requiring two convicted drug dealers to shell over nearly $4,000 to pay for naloxone. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/09/08/narcan-prices-are-skyrocketing-and-cities-are-begging-for-help-to-buy-it.html

It used to be sold as low as $4, and several politicians are complaining about the recent price hikes. Small companies that make the drug get bought by bigger companies (look at Pfizer purchasing Hospira).

As of October 2014 — the most recent time for which prices are available — Hospira's version of naloxone was $15.80 a dose. That's up from $0.92 a dose in 2005, according to Truven Health Analytics. The price of Hospira's version of naloxone hit a peak of $21.90 a dose in January 2014. Pfizer purchased Hospira last year.

Meanwhile, Kaléo has raised the price of its naloxone product, Evzio, several times since last year. In November 2015, the price went up to $375, followed by an increase to $1,875 in February 2016. Since then, the price has been raised to $2,250 for each single-dose injector. Evzio, which is an auto-injector that works like an EpiPen and is specifically created for use by people without medical training, was introduced at $287.50 for each single-dose injector in July 2014, according to Truven....

The price increases, combined with the increase in demand, have caused sales of naloxone to jump from $21.3 million in 2011 to $81.9 million last year, according to numbers from prescription-tracking company IMS Health and cited by The Los Angeles Times.

Amphastar, one of the two producers of the lower-priced injectable naloxone, saw a revenue increase of 4% in the first quarter of 2016 compared with the first quarter of 2015, according to a press release. The company attributed that increase largely "to an increase in sales of naloxone to $10.3 million from $6.7 million." http://www.businessinsider.com/price-of-naloxone-narcan-skyrocketing-2016-7

Unless this issue get more publicity the trend for this will continue. This will mean less people will get the drug, and more tax-payer money will line the pockets of private companies. The companies are exploited a high demand, with cartel like behavior. The extreme price hikes suggest this has nothing to do with the cost of production. Other countries negotiate drug prices, why can't we?

Hillary even talks about her $10 billion plan, which includes buying lots of narcan (naloxone)

Today, Hillary Clinton is making clear that this deadly epidemic of addiction must be addressed head-on and is proposing a bold proposal to do so. Her $10 billion Initiative to Combat America’s Deadly Epidemic of Drug and Alcohol Addiction sets forth ambitious goals to prevent and treat substance use disorders, and to support people in recovery....

First-Response: Create a state fund to help police, fire departments, and EMTs purchase naloxone; and create naloxone training programs for first responders. https://www.hillaryclinton.com/briefing/factsheets/2015/09/02/combat-addiction/

Clinton would also boost evidence-based prevention programs in schools and make naloxone, the overdose reversal drug, more widely available. Some states have already made naloxone available over the counter so family members and friends of addicts can purchase it. She's also stressed a need to improve and integrate mental health and substance abuse care, as the two often occur together. http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2016/10/10/us/politics/ap-us-campaign-2016-policy-rx-addiction.html

Recently Propagandist John Oliver got in on this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pdPrQFjo2o&feature=youtu.be&t=1048

Update - December 2016 Big-Pharma Executives were arrested for pushing fentanyl!

Six pharmaceutical executives who worked for fentanyl company Insys Therapeutics, including a former CEO, were arrested on Thursday and charged with leading a nationwide conspiracy to defraud insurance companies and bribe doctors to prescribe their powerful and addictive opioid painkiller, according to an indictment from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Massachusetts.

In order to get doctors to prescribe more fentanyl, the indictment says, Insys executives gave them thinly disguised kickbacks. One of the preferred methods for this was to bring them in to supposedly give paid speeches about their products with other healthcare professionals. But many of the events had no attendees, and sales representatives routinely falsified names of guests, the government claims.

When one of the company’s top prescribing doctors stopped prescribing as much of the potent opioid, one top executive emailed another saying, “we cannot go a single day without a prescription from … [the doctor]. I do not want to hear excuses, we pay good money here,” the court records indicate. http://fusion.net/story/374764/insys-executives-arrested-fentanyl/

New Update -

Naloxone is most commonly administered by injection or spray. Kaléo, a Virginia company, has increased the price of its naloxone auto-injectors, sold as Evzio, from $690 for a kit of two to $4,500 in less than two years. Amphastar of California nearly tripled the price of syringes pre-filled with naloxone.

“When we started in 1996, a 10cc vial of naloxone was $1.63. Now that 10cc vial is almost $300 at Walgreens here,” said Bigg. “Has the price been raised well beyond what it costs to make in an obscene way for such an important lifesaving drug? Yes.”

Robert Childs, director of the North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition, one of the largest non-profit distributors of naloxone in the US, said his organisation has spent about $220,000 this year giving out more than 13,000 naloxone kits to police officers and others working with those at risk of overdose.

“If naloxone wasn’t the price it is, we would be able to buy a lot more and get a lot more out there to high-risk populations,” he said. “There’s a public health crisis with opiate and opioid-based drug overdoses, and the response has often been to increase the price which is probably the worst response you can do.”

The increased demand and rising prices has resulted in a surge in income from naloxone for drug companies, up 400% since 2011 to $82m last year. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/dec/16/opioid-overdose-naloxone-pharmaceutical-price-gouging

Remember Kaléo is linked to the Clinton Foundation and Democratic party power structures.

For the first time in American history, median U.S. life expectancy is declining — as a result of opioid addiction. From 2000 to 2015, more than 500,000 persons in the United States died from drug overdoses. These casualty figures not only reflect a national health emergency, but are emblematic of a war on the American people. By comparison, approximately the same number of Americans lost their lives fighting in World War II, Korea and Vietnam — combined. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/jan/3/white-house-leadership-key-to-ending-the-opioid-ep/

Naloxone has been available since 1971, originally under the brand name Narcan, and now in several generic forms, as well as formulations with new delivery systems. Both categories have their own cost stories; a generic form made by Hospira, now owned by Pfizer, rose in price from less than $1 per milliliter vial in 2005 to more than $15 in 2014. The newer delivery systems range in price from $125 for two doses to as much as $3,750. http://www.cnbc.com/2017/01/04/as-opioid-epidemic-worsens-the-cost-of-waking-up-from-an-overdose-soars.html

Update - More Naloxone in more places.

In response to the exploding opioid epidemic plaguing Mississippi and the nation, grocery retailer Kroger and the state's top drug enforcement officials teamed Thursday to announce eased accessibility to the overdose antidote Naloxone.

John Dowdy, executive director of the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics, joined with local law enforcement and Kroger representatives to announce the drug will be available without prescription at 29 Kroger pharmacies throughout Mississippi. http://www.clarionledger.com/story/business/2017/05/26/mississippi-kroger-team-fight-opioid-epidemic/348810001/

A new state standing order goes into effect June 1 in Baltimore that will expand access to naloxone, a medication that reverses the effects of opioid overdose. And city pharmacists are preparing for the shift.

The move is another step in the effort to reduce opioid deaths in the state and city. Gov. Larry Hogan has declared Maryland's opioid epidemic a state of emergency, after fatal heroin overdoses nearly doubled between January and September 2016 compared to the previous year, and fentanyl deaths quadrupled. In total, deaths from these two opioid drugs spiked to 1,656. In March, Hogan signed an executive order for $50 million in new funding to go toward addressing the crisis. http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/news/2017/05/22/baltimore-pharmacies-ready-for-over-the-counter.html

Each formulation of naloxone — two injection doses, Narcan nasal spray, and Evzio auto-injector — essentially has one supplier. Though there are three manufacturers with FDA approval for 0.4-mg-per-milliliter-dose injections, the vast majority are sold by Hospira, which has increased the price by 129% since 2012 (see table). Only Amphastar manufactures 1-mg-per-milliliter injections, the dose used off-label as a nasal spray, which currently costs $39.60 after a 95% increase in September 2014. Newer, easier-to-use formulations are even more expensive. Narcan costs $150 for two nasal-spray doses. A two-dose Evzio package was priced at $690 in 2014 but is $4,500 today, a price increase of more than 500% in just over 2 years. http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1609578

Called Evzio, it is used to deliver naloxone, a life-saving antidote to overdoses of opioids. More than 33,000 people are believed to have died from such overdoses in 2015. And as demand for Kaleo’s product has grown, the privately held firm has raised its twin-pack price to $4,500, from $690 in 2014. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/massive-price-hike-for-lifesaving-opioid-overdose-antidote1/

---

“If you have to go outside of a wholesaler you are going to spend as much as $75 to $80 just for a 2mg vile, to as high as $150 if there is a national backlog or shortage on the medication,” said Glenn Mercer, Beaufort County’s EMS director.

Just a few years ago, the price for Narcan was around $10 per dose. Now, that price is around $40 if you buy wholesale. http://wnct.com/2017/06/21/price-for-narcan-concerning-as-overdoses-reach-unprecedented-levels/

In 2017, Jacksonville Fire Rescue is expected to transport well over 3,000 overdose/poisoning patients. In 2014, that number was just above 1700. It's estimated that transporting patients will cost JFRD $3.5 million which is over double the amount it cost in 2014. http://www.firstcoastnews.com/money/hold-od/457667584

And of course the US is allowing opium production to continue in Afghanistan

Over the past five years, programs of crop eradication and substitution have been largely abandoned as foreign funding has ended and insurgent attacks have increased. As a result, tens of thousands of farmers have returned to the lucrative business of growing opium poppies. Last year, 420,000 acres in Afghanistan were devoted to poppies, and opium production rose 43 percent over 2015, to 4,800 tons, according to the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/opium-use-booms-in-afghanistan-creating-a-silent-tsunami-of-addicted-women/2017/06/19/6c5b16f2-3985-11e7-a59b-26e0451a96fd_story.html?utm_term=.1f5c008ada2a

Afghanistan produces some 90% of the world's opium, which is extracted from poppy resin and refined to make heroin.

Iran is a major transit point for Afghan-produced opiates heading to Europe.

Opium production surged in Afghanistan after the US and its allies sent military forces into the country in 2001 with the aim of overthrowing the Taliban and eliminating al-Qaeda. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-40397727

The epidemic is getting so bad that states are suing big pharma for damages. It will be interesting to see if they win:

Missouri on Wednesday became the third U.S. state to accuse major drug manufacturers of fraudulently misrepresenting the risks of opioid painkillers now at the center of a national addiction epidemic.

Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley said his office filed a lawsuit in a state court in St. Louis against Purdue Pharma LP, Johnson & Johnson and units of Endo International Plc.

Hawley said the three companies knew their opioid products were addictive and potentially life-threatening, but "engaged in a deliberate campaign of fraud to convince Missouri doctors and consumers otherwise." https://www.reuters.com/article/us-missouri-opioids-idUSKBN19C1VK