A Highly Publicised Research Paper on Naloxone is Spreading Dangerous Misinformation

A new research paper on the life-saving medication naloxone, which reverses opioid overdoses, is spreading dangerous misinformation that could cost lives.

The paper is entitled The Moral Hazard of Lifesaving Innovations: Naloxone Access, Opioid Abuse, and Crime, and is authored by two US researchers: Jennifer L. Doleac and Anita Mukherjee. The paper claims that access to naloxone – one of the WHO’s essential medicines – encourages “riskier behaviours with respect to opioid abuse”, increases “opioid-related theft”, and does not reduce opioid-related deaths.

The paper has not been peer-reviewed, yet its findings have been widely cited in the press – including by the Washington Post and CNN. Though less than two weeks have passed since its publication, this paper has the potential to have profound effects on public policy; it is ammunition for the countless policymakers and press pundits who would rather perpetuate the failure of prohibition than introduce policies that reduce harm. (Talking Drugs, UK, 19.03.2018)

https://www.talkingdrugs.org/naloxone-paper-spreads-misinformation