• Meet Our Team
  • Advertise on SCDN
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Contact Us
Sunday, June 29
Scioto County Daily News
  • Login
  • Register
Subscribe For $1/week
  • Public Safety
    SCDN File Photo

    Heroes in Uniform: First Responders Step Up During Mental Health Emergency in Wheelersburg

    Sheriff night 2

    🚨Crowbar Chaos in West Portsmouth! Ex-Boyfriend Brawl Leaves One Injured, Suspects on the Run🚓 

    Scioto County Dog Shelter

    Help Fill the Scioto County Dog Shelter with Love: Sponsor a Dog Kennel Today! 

    Sheriff sticker

    Busy Day for Scioto County First Responders: Medical Runs, Alarms, and Crime Reports Stack Up 

    William Kerns

    🔥Flasher, Firebug & Free Again? Paroled Arsonist William Kerns Arrested (Again) After June 26 Parole Violation 

    dog animal cruelty

    Animal Hoarding Horror: Shock Sentences That Have the Town Talking! 😱🐾 

    Busted Arrests Portsmouth Scioto County Mugshots

    Busted! 06/27/25 New Arrests in Portsmouth, Ohio – Scioto County Mugshots

    police ppd banner

    Grace Under Pressure: Portsmouth Police Calm Chaos at Marathon Without Making Arrest 

    CASA Program Cut: What Happens to Scioto County’s Foster Kids Now? 

    Sheriff sticker

    🚨 Busy Wednesday in Scioto County: Medical Runs, Burglaries, Fires, and Road Woes Keep First Responders on the Move 🚓🚑🔥 

    Naked Woman

    📱Nude Nightmare: Woman Targeted in Vicious ‘Revenge Porn’ Attack by Ex 

    Family’s Clash with Scioto County Deputies Sparks Allegations of False Charges and Legal Missteps 

    New Dog Bite Law Could Strain Already Maxed-Out Scioto County Shelter and Court System 

    Busted Arrests Portsmouth Scioto County Mugshots

    Busted! 06/26/25 New Arrests in Portsmouth, Ohio – Scioto County Mugshots

    Cocaine-Fueled Dog Attack Shakes Scioto County: The Drug Crisis Hits the Shelter Hard 

    Troubled Bad Youth Kids

    RUNAWAYAS FROM AREA GROUP HOME PROMPT GUN THREATS AND MANHUNT

    police investigation

    Police Investigate Two Disturbing Child Abuse Reports 

    🚨 BACK FROM THE BRINK: Hero Cop Revives Overdose Victim with Narcan  

    Man pants down

    Man Drops Pants in Front of Kids Outside Burger King  

    Sheriff sticker

    🚨 Scioto County 911 Roundup – June 24, 2025 🚨 

  • Lawrence County
  • Politics

    Cathy Coleman Still Fighting: Family Shuts Down Hospice Rumors, Says Recovery Still Underway

    County May Tap Opioid Settlement Funds to Finish MARCS Tower Project 

    Cathy Coleman

    ‘Small Steps, Big Faith’: Commissioner Cathy Coleman Edges Closer to Recovery 

    ‘Praise God!’: Commissioner Cathy Coleman Shows Remarkable Progress After Harrowing Weeks

    Cathy Coleman

    Cautious Hope and Harsh Realities: New Details Emerge on Commissioner Cathy Coleman’s Condition 

    Scioto County Commissioners Cancel This Week’s Meeting 

    Robert Horton

    Sudden Twist: Horton Court Dates Scrapped Ahead of Trial 

    ‘A Sign of Hope’: Commissioner Cathy Coleman Shows Small Improvements Amid Ongoing Critical Condition 

    Recorder Gary Jenkins

    Scioto County Recorder Gary Jenkins Unveils New Office Website 

    Staggering 236 Recovery Houses in Area — and the Fight for Reform Faces Pushback 

    Cathy Coleman

    Community Urged to Pray For Cathy Coleman as Family Faces Devastating Update 

    Scottie Powell

    Commissioner Scottie Powell on Trans Sanctuary Resolution: “Symbolic, Not Substantive” 

    Cathy Coleman

    Update from the Scioto County Commissioners on Commissioner Cathy Coleman 

    What Did Portsmouth’s LGBTQ+ Sanctuary Resolution Really Say? 

    Portsmouth Rehab

    Portsmouth Rejects LGBTQ+ Sanctuary City Status in Heated Council Vote 

    Cathy Coleman

    It’s a Miracle! – Scioto County Rallies Around Commissioner Cathy Coleman After Medical Crisis Turnaround 

    Scioto County Rallies in Prayer for Commissioner Cathy Coleman After Tragic Crash 

    Risky Business? City Wants to Sell $4.5 Million in Bonds

    Portsmouth LGBT Sanctuary City Proposal Scrapped – New Resolution Coming

    Portsmouth Council Takes First Step Toward Homelessness Task Force 

  • Feel Good

    BREAKING: Commissioners Make Shocking Decision—Halloween to Remain on Halloween 

    Escape to the Hills: A Summer Reading List Set in Appalachia 

    Scioto County Champs: Lady Trojans and Word Wizards Bring Home the Gold 

    “I Held Those Keys Tight” — One Man’s Harrowing Journey from Addiction to Hope 

    Three girls in quinceañera dresses stand beside one another. The one in middle has a gold dress while the other two wear pink.

    Tips for Selecting the Color of a Quinceañera Dress

    The Day the Streak Ended: Lakers’ 1987 Record Broken

    An angler standing at the edge of a lake just after sunset with three fishing rods resting on the ground next to him.

    Night Fishing: Who Is It for and How Do You Start?

    good cops

    Cops Rescue Lost Man 

    good cops

    Kid Misses Bus, Deputy to the Rescue 

    A group of people stands outside with their arms in the air. They hold their hands together, making a pyramid shape.

    Hidden Gems: Community Strategies for Mental Wellness

    good cops

    Man Says He’s Trapped in Armory 

    Good Samaritan 2

    Good Neighbor and Officer to the Rescue 

    Portsmouth Flood Wall Stars

    Meet the New Flood Wall Stars! 

    A bearded man is sitting on the floor and comforting his dog in a wheelchair. The dog has his ears pinned back.

    Training Tips To Help Your Dog Get Used to Their Wheelchair

    U.S. housing market

    Tips for Making Your New House Feel Like a Home

    The Best Freshwater Fish To Catch This Summer

    The Best Freshwater Fish To Catch This Summer

    A man approaching the bowling lane with a red bowling ball as his three friends in the background cheer him on.

    How Bowling Can Improve Your Mental Health

    good cops

    Lost Kid Calls Cops for Help 

    Backyard camping

    Backyard Adventure: Unforgettable Family Camping

    Sunshine or Snowflakes: Which Season Wins America’s Heart?

  • Obituaries

    Geneva Mullins 78 of New Boston

    Willard Fenton

    Willard Fenton, 86, of South Webster

    Richard Lewis

    Richard Lewis, 75 of McDermott

    Judy Gayle (Wells) Scifres

    Judy Gayle Scifres, 74 of South Shore,

    Braxton Spears Jr., 76, of South Shore,

    Braxton Spears Jr., 76 of South Shore

    Walter Ronald Kidd

    Walter Ronald Kidd, 89 of Xenia

    Lois Helen Friend

    Lois Helen Friend, 76 of Lucasville

    Patricia Ann Holland

    Patricia Ann Holland, 93 of Waverly

    Marsha Faye Gammon

    Marsha Faye Gammon, 72 of Wheelersburg

    Janet Sue Perkins

    Janet Sue Perkins, 79 of Ashland

    Barbara Williams

    Nancy L. Pistole, 85 of West Portsmouth

    Charles Lloyd Smith

    Charles Lloyd Smith, 84, of Portsmouth

    Maxine Ballard

    Maxine Ballard, 84, of South Point

    David Paul Kidder

    David Paul Kidder, 57 of West Portsmouth

    Carolyn Sue Reeder,

    Carolyn Sue Reeder, 75 of Portsmouth

    Dorothy Jane Pistole

    Dorothy Jane Pistole, 64 of Portsmouth

    Barbara Williams

    Mary Meretia Robertson Wolfe, 87, of Londonderry, OH

    Patricia Louise Coburn

    Patricia Louise Coburn 99 of Portsmouth

    Nora Ellen Easter

    Nora Ellen Easter, 97 of Friendship

     Deborah Sue ‘Susie’ Dingus

     Deborah Sue ‘Susie’ Dingus, 74 of Portsmouth

  • More News
    • All News
    • Arts & Entertainment
    • Education
    • Economy
    • Food & Drinks
    • Local Business
    • National
    • Opinion
    • Regional
    • Strange But True
    • Trending
No Result
View All Result
Scioto County Daily News
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • Register
Scioto County Daily News
No Result
View All Result

Shady Pain Doctors and Pharma: Worse Than Corner Pushers

Cyn Mackley by Cyn Mackley
5 years ago
in Opinion
Shady pain docs and pharma are worse than corner pushers

Photo by: Tiffany Steinke https://www.flickr.com/photos/tsteinke/ Edited by SCDN

ShareTweetEmail

Heroin is bad for you. Everybody knows it. Even some dude selling it out of his car knows it and he’d never try to tell you otherwise. Who would try to tell you that heroin is helpful?

Doctors, major pharmaceutical companies, and healthcare software manufacturers, that’s who. Here at Scioto County Daily News, we’ve reported this week on the startling news that close to 1 billion MME of morphine in the form of over 48 million pills were shipped to Scioto County over the course of eight years. A county with around 75,000 residents. If you do the math, it comes out to 617 pills per person. Mexican cartels could only hope to be able to move that much product. Turns out our worst nightmare was a drug pusher with an unlimited PR budget.

Of course, cartels can’t get your doctor to bill Medicaid for your baggy of black tar heroin. Why would doctors widely prescribe a known dangerously addictive drug for everything from backaches to headaches? In a word: “marketing.”  Now, I’m not talking about pill mill operators. They are greedy, unethical monsters who don’t even deserve to be called doctors. I’m talking about decent physicians who actually care about patients. Many say they were oversold the benefits and mislead about the safety of these “new” extended-release opiates by pharmaceutical reps. I worry about people with medical degrees that think you should believe what salesmen tell you. The other shocking revelation (at least to me) this week was that a major medical software company took money from pharmaceutical companies to place pop-ups in medical records software that reminded doctors to suggest opioids.

RELATED POSTS

Geneva Mullins 78 of New Boston

Willard Fenton, 86, of South Webster

Heroes in Uniform: First Responders Step Up During Mental Health Emergency in Wheelersburg

Please Support This Local Business

The absolute worst thing is that opioids are lousy painkillers. They are great for surgery and post-surgery and a blessing for short-term end-of-life care. But multiple studies show that when it comes to things like severe chronic back pain, they don’t provide any better long-term relief than taking Tylenol or Aleve.

A five-year study of veterans where half received managed opioid care and half over-the-counter meds and therapy showed that after five years, those on opioids had no greater pain relief or improvement of quality of life.

I’m not going to list all the adverse side effects of opioids. In Scioto County, we know them all too well.  Oh wait, I lied. Nausea, lung infection, heart infection, muscle pain, falls, breathing difficulties, addiction, and death by overdose. And lets not even touch on the destruction of our society.

God in heaven, the people of this area have suffered beyond measure with the unending side effects of pain relievers that aren’t even that good at relieving pain. We know the government and insurance companies hate to pay for physical therapy but imagine if Medicaid, Medicare, and insurance companies had been willing to pay for 48 million physical therapy sessions. Or even 48,000.

This is one of the worst cases of mass-poisonings I’ve ever heard of. Good God, we’d have been better off if they’d decided to drop a bomb on us. It would have been easier to dig out of. Murders. F#%!ing murders.

One note. I’m pretty much a Libertarian. I don’t care if you want to drink, smoke, take drugs, or gamble away your life savings. But when companies that are supposed to make medicine, conspire with companies that make software, and with doctors to convince you to a highly addictive drug with horrible side-effects and little therapeutic benefit and it’s paid for by Medicaid, Medicare, and insurance funds meant for drugs that help people, it is not only an ethical betrayal, it’s a crime. Like I said, f#%!ing murders.

Tags: FamilyHealthopioid crisisscam
Please Support This Local Business

TRENDING NOW

Busted Arrests Portsmouth Scioto County Mugshots

Busted! 06/20/25 New Arrests in Portsmouth, Ohio – Scioto County Mugshots

June 20, 2025
Scioto County Grand Jury Indictments

13 New Scioto County Grand Jury Indictments

June 20, 2025
Busted Arrests Portsmouth Scioto County Mugshots

Busted! 06/19/25 New Arrests in Portsmouth, Ohio – Scioto County Mugshots

June 19, 2025

Train Trouble: Duo Busted for Late-Night Trespass in Rail Yard 

June 19, 2025
Angry Woman

Late, Loud, and Locked Out: Mom Trespassed After Dental Office Meltdown Over Tardiness 

June 19, 2025

ABOUT US

We are a grassroots team of local journalists on a mission to give our community up-to-the-second news and events for Southern Ohio, Northern Kentucky, and Western West Virginia. We believe progress inspires change and we believe our reporting has become the front-lines of Portsmouth, Ohio's comeback.

CATEGORIES

  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Casino
  • Economy
  • Education
  • Feel Good
  • Food & Drink
  • Local Business
  • National
  • Obituaries
  • Ohio
  • Opinion
  • Politics
  • Public Safety
  • Regional
  • Strange But True
  • Video

AREAS SERVED

  • Portsmouth
  • Wheelersburg
  • Minford
  • Waverly
  • Friendship
  • Ironton
  • West Union
  • Piketon
  • Coal Grove
  • South Point
  • Vanceburg
  • Grayson
  • South Shore
  • Greenup
  • Raceland
  • Ashland

SITE SEARCH

No Result
View All Result
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service

© 2025 Scioto County Daily News. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • Sign Up
  • Home
  • Trending
  • Public Safety
  • Lawrence County
  • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Feel Good
  • All News
  • About Us
    • Meet Our Team
    • FAQ
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise on SCDN
  • Legal
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Service

© 2025 Scioto County Daily News. All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • Sign Up
  • Home
  • Trending
  • Public Safety
  • Lawrence County
  • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Feel Good
  • All News
  • About Us
    • Meet Our Team
    • FAQ
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise on SCDN
  • Legal
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Service

© 2025 Scioto County Daily News. All Rights Reserved.