Walker 1 William Walker Keaton ENG111-09 9 July 2013 Prescription Drug Consumption in the U.S.A.

Recently there has been a focus on the increase in prescription drug use in the United States. While existing studies suggest that this is simply due to drug addiction, they have not addressed the possibility of the increase being positive. In this paper, I will be exploring the many causes of this influx. I will explain both the positive and negative reasons why prescription use is on the rise, so that a clearer understanding might be had. Over the past several years, the rate of prescription drug use has skyrocketed in America. A study released by the CDC states the percentage of Americans who took at least one prescription drug rose from 43.5% in 1999-2000 to 48.3% in the 2007-2008 period (Hendrick). This could be related to the increased availability of prescription drugs in the U.S. The private health care system in place in the U.S. allows pharmaceutical companies to charge more for treatment than in other countries, a sort of supplier-induced demand, which could lead to incentives to prescribe those drugs (Hanson). Doctors who prescribe certain medicines can receive benefits or bonuses from the pharmaceutical companies providing them. This could be a reason as to why the rate of prescription drug use is highest in America than anywhere else in the world. Many Americans also have access to prescription drug insurance. The National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare released an article stating that in 2010, 34.5 million people were enrolled in Medicare Part D (NCPSSM). With so many people receiving

Walker 2 prescription benefits, isnt it expected to have a higher prescription use? People having increased access would mean that more people will fill their prescriptions. According to a survey conducted by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, Nhanes, a person who has prescription drug coverage is twice as likely to use said prescriptions than a person who does not have insurance (Bakalar). This may not be an issue though; increased ability to access prescriptions in the U.S. could be a good thing. It seems that, while prescription use in America is on the rise, the reasons may not all be negative. Another, and possibly the most common, cause for the rise in prescription drug use in the U.S. is the increase in prescription drug abuse. This is defined as a patterned use of a substance (drug) in which the user consumes the substance in amounts or with methods neither approved nor advised by medical professionals. However, this does not mean that the drugs did not originate from a legal or medical source. Americans produce about 88% of the worlds legal amphetamine (Keeler). Adderall, and other similar stimulants, can be prescribed to people of all ages, and is typically prescribed in the treatment of ADD and ADHD. However, it has become extremely popular amongst college students who take it to boost their ability to study. In 2010, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that 11.4% of young people ages 12 to 25 used prescription drugs non-medically within the past year. The study also found that college students, between the ages of 18 and 22, were twice as likely to abuse Adderall as those of the same age and not in college (Keeler). These drugs, while not taken properly, are usually acquired through legal means, either the student is prescribed them, or the person the student bought them from has a legal prescription. In larger statistics about prescription use in the U.S. its difficult to pinpoint how many of these prescriptions are being used or abused. Another highly popular pharmaceutical drug that is being abused is opioids, or painkillers. Americans

Walker 3 consume almost 80% of the worlds painkiller supply each year (Zennie). Painkillers are highly addictive, and many people who began taking them legally and by doctor recommendation, end up abusing them. Another cause for the high rate of pharmaceutical drug use in the U.S. is the rise of psychiatry and the treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatry is a relatively new field and new medicines as well as disorders are still being identified all the time. According to a NCHS and CDC data brief "Antidepressants were the third most common prescription drug taken by Americans of all ages in 20052008 and the most frequently used by persons aged 1844 years. From 19881994 and 20052008, the rate of antidepressant use in the United States among all ages increased nearly 400%.... About one in 10 Americans aged 12 and over takes antidepressant medication" (ToxicPsychiatry). This is a massive increase and now the amount of antidepressant and other psychiatric drug use in the States dwarfs that of the rest of the world. This also goes hand-in-hand with the increase of Adderall usage mentioned earlier. As depression and other mental illnesses lose their stigma, more and more people are seeking out treatment and thus the amount of pills prescribed increases. As the amount of prescription drugs consumed in America increases we ask ourselves what do we do? It is my opinion that while many of these drugs are obtained legally, and illnesses are diagnosed properly, that the prescription drug system as a whole is being abused. Doctors are given incentives to prescribe more products, and thus the addiction rate increases as well. I also believe that more and more people are seeking medical assistance for what they perceive to be mental disorders, and parents are quick to blame disabilities for their childs behavior. As a solution, I think we as Americans need to put pressure on pharmaceutical companies to get them to stop encouraging doctors to prescribe medicines. We need to focus on

Walker 4 helping people overcome addiction, and keeping people from ever becoming addicted in the first place. We should also try to find more natural or therapeutic solutions to mental illness before prescribing drugs. The high amount of pills prescribed in this nation is not all bad, but if we do our part then maybe we can get the number down.

Walker 5 Works Cited

Bakalar, Nicholas. "Prescription Drug Use Soars In U.S. Over Past Decade." NY Times. N.p., 2010. Web. 30 June 2013. <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/19/health/research/19stats.html?_r=0>. Cancer Treatment and Survivorship Statistics, 2012." CA: A Cancer Journal For Scientists. Wiley Online Library, 2012. Web. 25June2013<http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.3322/caac.21149/full>. Hanson, Dirk. "Addiction Inbox." blogspot.com. N.p., 28 Jul 2010. Web. 25 Jun 2013. <http://addiction-dirkh.blogspot.com/2010/07/us-leads-world-in-prescription-druguse.html>. Hendrick, Bill. "Prescription Drug Use on the Rise in U.S." WebMD. WebMD, 2010. Web. 25 June 2013. Keeler, Meredith. "Adderall Addiction: Students Misuse Drug to Gain Boost While Studying." Iowa State Daily. Iowa State Daily, 2012. Web. 26 June 2013. "NCPSSM Medicare Medicare Fast Facts." Fast Facts About Medicare. National Committee To Preserve Social Security And Medicare, n.d. Web. 25 June 2013. "Nonmedical Use of Prescription-Type Drugs, by County Type." The NSDUH Report. SAMHSA, 2013. Web. 25 June 2013. <Nonmedical Use of Prescription-Type Drugs, by County Type>. "Prescription Drugs." National Institute on Drug Abuse. National Institute on Drug Abuse, n.d. Web. 25 June 2013. "ToxicPsychiatry." Psychiatric Statistics. Toxic Psychiatry, n.d. Web. 26 June 2013.

Walker 6 Zennie, Michael. "Mail Online." National Center for Biotechnology Information. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2012. Web. 25 June 2013.