Oxycodone In The NewsOxycodone In The News

Media History

• Late 90’s murder cases

• Eventually becomes Law & Order Plot

• Handful of celebrity abusers

• 2001-2003 Hysteria

Famous AbusersFamous Abusers

“The newspaper

articles didn’t hurt

as much; I didn’t

hurt as much”

Newsweek, 2001

C i n d y M c C a i n

More Famous Abusers

• Caught shoplifting (2002)

• Convicted (2003)

• Sentence reduced/ Doctor punished (2004)

• Doctor arrested (2004)

W i n o n a R y d e r

…the list goes on

"Too many whites are getting away with drug use. The answer is to find the ones who are getting away with it, convict them, and send them up the river.”

R u s h L i m b a u g h

Inane Political Punditry Ensues

vs

What Does Serena Altschul Say?

• Newsweek : 6 Articles (5)

• TIME : 12 Articles (4)

• NY Times: 141 Articles

• MTV News Special

• CBS : 47 Stories

• FoxNews : 28 Stories

(5 Defending Rush)

2001-2004

So What?

• Raises public awareness of dangers of Oxycodone abuse

• Raises public awareness of pleasures of Oxycodone abuse.

• Purdue revises warning label (2001)

• Purdue changes dosing

July 25, 2001 (http://www.fda.gov)

Revised OxyCodone Label

Current Events

• 3 Doctors tried for murder in 2004 for prescribing high doses

• 1 Convicted (so far)

Works Consulted• Adler, Jerry. “In the Grip of a Deeper Pain.” Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2003 • http://www.cnn.com• http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2001/safety01.hmtl• http://www.foxnews.com • http://www.newsweek.com• http://www.opiods.com/oxycodone/• http://www.time.com• http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=10871