Big Pharma’s Role in Fueling U.S. Opioid Crisis

From painkillers to fentanyl, the U.S. opioid crisis has claimed over 500,000 lives in two decades — and experts say pharmaceutical companies hold a key piece of the puzzle.

‘Prescribing Like Candy’

Nia Casselman, a 25-year veteran in addiction treatment, pulls no punches: \"Physicians became dope dealers.\" She shares how companies flooded the market with opioids, downplaying addiction risks while pushing massive prescriptions. \"Patients couldn’t quit, then turned to street drugs,\" she explains.

From Pills to Poison

What began as legal pain management morphed into America’s deadliest public health disaster. Fentanyl — 50x stronger than heroin — now dominates illegal markets, with overdose deaths tripling since 2016.

Accountability in Focus

While lawsuits have led to $50B+ settlements from drugmakers, advocates argue systemic change is lagging. As Casselman puts it: \"Profit shouldn’t outweigh lives.\"

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Some pharmaceutical companies fuel opioid crisis in U.S.

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