Lilly Anthony- The "Kill Pill"

Summary: Written by Sara Sidner and Mallory Simon, the article “Prince's death and the growing fear of the 'kill pill’” explains how drugs being used these days are extremely more dangerous. The drug that supposedly killed Prince is called fentanyl, an opioid that acts similar to heroin, but “50 times stronger than heroin, up to 100 times stronger than morphine.” What makes this drug more dangerous than others is that most people who take it don't realize that they are taking it because counterfeiters have made it more difficult to tell whether it’s counterfeit or not. Different prescriptions for things such as pain reliever might even have fentanyl in it. Overdosing in states such as Minnesota have increased because some states do not monitor what is crossing over state lines illegally. When the autopsy for Prince showed fentanyl toxic in his system, people started to realize that this epidemic is becoming an issue. Dr. Willinbring says that regulatory authorities are to be blamed for the epidemic because in Florida pill mills can operate without any regulation. After working with opioid addicts over the years, he says the best way for them to recover is to replace the brain with whatever they lack. With the awful effects that this drug brings, the solutions are limited and if authorities don't take action soon the danger will become even greater.

Analysis: This article was published last Friday which is concerning in a way that what seems to have been an issue for a while now, we are just now hearing about. Prince’s death though is the most well known death from fentanyl which is probably why more people have looked into this drug. I know that overdosing has always been a lead cause for death, but when reading this article I was reminded that even prescription drugs can be a danger when it comes to overdosing. The article is trying to portray that what we know as outsiders from drug use to be harmful, is nothing compared to drugs such as fentanyl that are far more dangerous. When reading quotes from different doctors talk about how difficult it is to treat and help those who are addicted, you realize how big of an issue this is. They call fentanyl the “kill pill” cause it takes every ounce of energy and life left in you. By sharing the awful effects fentanyl has had, the article really leaves you knowing how much of a hazard it is. In U.S. history there were many major epidemics that killed hundreds of people whether that be some sort of disease or contagious illness. One of the very first was the smallpox epidemic that took place from 1633-1634. Brought by new European settlers, the smallpox killed off many different Native American tribes. Back then their medical knowledge was limited on curing smallpox just like how doctors today know little about helping those who have taken fentanyl. Fentanyl is threatening to lots of people taking drugs whether they’re on prescription or not. Unless we stop preventing this drug to spread, more people could be killed just like the Native Americans were when smallpox spread throughout the New World.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/26/health/prince-minnesota-fentanyl-counterfeit-pills/index.html