Chronic pain and opioid drugs combine a nastycondition with an equally nasty treatment. For many Americans,treating pain with narcotic pharmaceuticals has become a habit, oneencouraged for years by the medical profession.

But now, as Paula Span writes in The New York Times,the nasty couple may be breaking up.

As media and medical professionals continue to track the growing“opioid crisis,” suddenly whatwas once a panacea for the suffering of many seniors is now beingattacked as the enemy. Using opioids has been rebranded as adangerous method that makes the elderly lazy, dependent andincapable of following safer treatment programs that don’t includeopioids.

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Dan Cook

Dan Cook is a journalist and communications consultant based in Portland, OR. During his journalism career he has been a reporter and editor for a variety of media companies, including American Lawyer Media, BusinessWeek, Newhouse Newspapers, Knight-Ridder, Time Inc., and Reuters. He specializes in health care and insurance related coverage for BenefitsPRO.