Work

Racial Bias in the US Opioid Epidemic: A Review of the History of Systemic Bias and Implications for Care

Year: 2018

Type: article

Abstract: The opioid epidemic has been declared a US national public health emergency. Discrepancies in the rates of abuse and access to treatment exist among non-white minorities. A narrative literature review evaluated the minority racial disparities in opioid use, abuse, and care in the US. Racial disparities in the prescription of opioid-containing compounds are dramatic with the non-white individuals being prescribed at half the rate. Historical and cognitive biases may have insulated the non-white minorities, while the minorities have limited access to treatment. Physician bias, media portrayal of opioid abuse disorders, and governmental regulation are a polyfactorial root of racial inequity in the opioid epidemic. As part of the national response, addressing these issues will be an important factor in curbing this epidemic.

Source: Cureus

DOI: 10.7759/cureus.3733

Authors: Taylor N Santoro, Jonathan D Santoro

Institutions: Columbia University, Massachusetts General Hospital

Language: English

Topic: Opioid Use Disorder Treatment

Subfield: Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDGs: Reduced inequalities, Good health and well-being

Open Access status: diamond

OpenAlex ID: W2904933179