Dr Cush, I practiced Rheumatology in Ohio from 1980 to 2012. During a period in the late 1980s and 1990s, I recall very clearly that we Ohio physicians were told we were undertreating pain and allowing patients to suffer needlessly. Pain was to be considered the "fifth vital sign" and we were specifically threatened with malpractice if we didn't treat a patient's pain aggressively. Opioids were definitely part of the therapeutic armamentarium". What did a thoughtful doctor do? He/she prescribed opioids, of course. So I have to say it galls me more than a little that drug manufacturers and care providers are now being criticized from all quarters for doing what was essentially demanded of them. I'm not saying we're without blame, but the history and context of this problem needs to be made clear. This is the kind of thing that can happen when non-physicians (i.e. politicians and government folks) try to dictate medical care, even when their motives are quite good. Wm Treuhaft MD Portland, OR