I-Team: Fighting OxyContin addiction

By Jim Taricani
Investigative Reporter
Published: November 12, 2008

If you have OxyContin in your medicine cabinet, experts say keep a close eye on it.  It’s the No. 1 drug of choice on the street when it’s used illegally.

“The primary threat we see for a diverted prescription med on the street is OxyContin,“ said Brian Crowell, a Drug Enforcement Administration agent.

The DEA says doctors are routinely prescribing the powerful narcotic painkiller for all kinds of pain. It was originally produced to help cancer patients.

One woman, who we’ll call “Barbara,“ is from a southeastern Massachusetts community. She is a professional with a college degree and a successful career.

She became hooked on OxyContin after being addicted to heroin.

“OxyContin was probably the worst. Worse than the heroin for me,“ Barbara said.

Barbara, like many addicts in the past few years, started using heroin after getting hooked on OxyContin because heroin is much cheaper.

“I got introduced to OxyContin. My habit was so bad. I ended up taking a second mortgage on my house because of it,“ Barbara said.

Barbara said the drug cost $70 to $80 a pill.

Using three pills a day, Barbara’s habit was costing her nearly $250 a day, seven days a week.

“I was at a point where I was suicidal,“ Barbara said.

Barbara has been clean for more than a year and is doing well.

Related Link
Learn to Cope

Brockton is home to a nonprofit organization called Learn to Cope.

Joanne Peterson, the founder and executive director, said young people are dying of drug overdoes—heroin and OxyContin—in large numbers.

If you’re a parent, here are some things to look for.

“You’ll find things like the tops of a Q-tip all around their room and not be sure why, or broken Q-tips,“ Peterson said. “That’s what they use to filter the heroin in the spoon.“

Matt and Paul are two teenagers in southeastern Massachusetts. Paul’s older brother became hooked on drugs.  Matt said OxyContin is popular among teens.

“I knew a group of kids that got really into that. They had to go to rehab and all that stuff,“ Matt said.

If you have prescription OxyContin or other opiate types of painkillers in your home, keep them locked up.

Otherwise, experts say, you could find your children addicted or in extreme cases—dead.

Related Story:

Part I: Fighting OxyContin on the street