Last month, the Obama administration declared a public health emergency in Puerto Rico to cope with the spread of the Zika virus. There's no question that Zika poses a threat to public health, but its magnitude is uncertain. In contrast, we know that the opioid epidemic is killing more than 500 Americans a week and harming thousands more. Why isn't that a public health emergency, too?
This epidemic is a personal one for us. We practice medicine in Charlestown, a Boston neighborhood with 17,000 residents. Last week, families held a vigil for loved ones lost to opioid overdoses: 112 pictures were on display. Every day, we treat overdose survivors and others desperately seeking help for drug addiction. But we find ourselves stymied by our inability to get access to the treatments needed by our patients with opioid use disorders.
