Reference no: EM132479846

Decide whether each statement is true, false, or uncertain, and explain why. Explanations may take the form of words, graphs, math, or some combination of the three.

1. Much of the recent policy discussion surrounding opioid use has been about its serious consumption externalities, which includes health and productivity losses, economic-compulsive crime, and accidental overdose deaths, the costs of which are borne in part by taxpayers, employers, and families. Based on the evidence you read for class, policymakers should address these concerns by implementing more supply control policies that prevent drug companies from producing the major brand-name opioids like OxyContin and Vicodin.

2. An alternative way to address some of the consumption externalities of opioids is to make harm-reduction products more accessible. For example, Naloxone is a drug that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose if it is given quickly after the original drug consumption. A supply-and-demand framework suggests that making Naloxone more readily available might not always be a good way to reduce social harm from opioid use.