In 2014, the overdose death rate from opioid addiction among white Americans aged 25 to 34 was five times higher than the equivalent figure in 1999.

In New York state all prescriptions for a medicine will now be sent by doctors via the internet directly to a person’s pharmacy of choice. Because doctors will no longer give people handwritten paper prescriptions, this should limit the chances for fraud or theft – for example, by altering the name on a prescription or the amount of opioid prescribed.

It isn’t clear how often such prescription fraud happens, but in 2010 7 million people in the US admitted to illegal use of prescription drugs. This is of particular concern in the case of opioids, which were responsible for almost 19,000 deaths by overdose in 2014. This is a step forward, but once people have had electronic prescriptions filled, they can still pass or sell the drugs on to others who do not have a prescription.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is taking another approach, urging doctors not to prescribe opioids for chronic pain. The organisation released a new set of guidelines for doctors last week, which also recommend that people who receive long-term opioid treatment be weaned off in tapering doses. (New Scientist April 2016)

Just a few years ago I was given opioids for pain after a major operation. They dealt with the pain, and the hallucinations were quite entertaining. But the side effects were dreadful and I got off the drug as fast as possible, in tapering doses. But doing so was difficult and I can see why people get hooked. Now we have a dreadful epidemic of addiction and death throughout the country, the poorer communities being worst affected. This is a scourge created by the very people supposed to guard our health. Fortunately, even politicians of both parties recognise the threat; it is a political as well as a health issue, and at last something is being done.