Faced with a growing nationwide opioid addiction, health and consumer advocates say it’s time to identify and sever ties with the culprits behind the scourge—pain medication manufacturers and the companies who promote their products.
In Massachusetts, which recently saw a spike in deaths related to heroin overdoses, police and community organizations in Gloucester implemented a new program this year—known as the Angel Initiative—to help addicts get clean in favor of arresting them for illegal drug use.
But on Wednesday, the Gloucester police force added a new effort to the initiative: laying bare the links between opioid abuse and the country’s largest pharmaceutical companies.