Opioid Use May Explain 20% of Drop in American Men’s Labor-Force Participation

[TomSea]

Opioid Use May Explain 20% of Drop in American Men’s Labor-Force Participation
By Agnel Philip
September 7, 2017, 8:26 AM CDT

Opioid use by American men may account for one-fifth of the decline in their participation in the U.S. labor force, according to a study by Princeton University economist Alan Krueger.

“The opioid crisis and depressed labor-force participation are now intertwined in many parts of the U.S.,” Krueger, who was chief economist at the Treasury Department in the Obama administration, wrote in the study released Thursday at a Brookings Institution conference in Washington.

Continued: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-07/opioid-use-explains-20-of-drop-in-american-men-from-labor-force

In no way do I believe this. If one assigned a figure to it, oh, maybe 5%. It might be possible.

[Cyber Liberty]

In no way do I believe this. If one assigned a figure to it, oh, maybe 5%. It might be possible.

It also ignores the people who would not be in the work force because of the chronic pain Opioids treat.

[jmyrlefuller]

Or it could be the other way around: with no decent paying work, they turn to opioids to cope.

Correlation != causation.

[corbe]

   Opioids were the only thing that allowed me to continue to work, after multiple spinal surgeries, for over 10 years, Yea, I became addicted, and the tradeoff became unbearable, so I ditched them 5 years ago last month, and retired last year.

   Many, many people need these drugs for pain management, as I once did, but now, new laws to stop the few abusers have become so onerous on the truly needy, they suffer. 

[Smokin Joe]

In no way do I believe this. If one assigned a figure to it, oh, maybe 5%. It might be possible.

Oh, yeah, make unemployed people out to be druggies.

That way the druggies in Congress and the rest of the effing government can blame the people whose lives their economic and immigration policies have screwed up.

The 'depressed labor force participation' comes from people who lost their jobs under Obama and the increasingly GOP Congress, who have exhausted their unemployment benefits if they had any, and are either living off savings or scratching by on cash money.

Not all that group have gone to using drugs to escape, by any means, and some of those who use 'opioids' have legitimate pain issues which are no longer addressed by insurance because they lost their effing jobs (see above).

[GtHawk]

It also ignores the people who would not be in the work force because of the chronic pain Opioids treat.

I was taking vicodin for years because of migraines and never missed a day of work. And later took tramadol for back and knee pain and still never missed a day working construction.

[Cyber Liberty]

I was taking vicodin for years because of migraines and never missed a day of work. And later took tramadol for back and knee pain and still never missed a day working construction.

I think that's because you are tough, and won't stand for people caring for you.  That's difficult work under difficult circumstances.

[GtHawk]

I think that's because you are tough, and won't stand for people caring for you.  That's difficult work under difficult circumstances.

Well , my parents did instill a strong work ethic, but mainly I had a family to support and no one was going to pay me for staying home and whining. It did all catch up with me in the end, work on three lumbar vertebrae, replacement of four cervical disks, and one total knee.........that was a busy two years and the end of work. But as a young Marine once told me  "It could be worse, you could be trapped in a burning car".

[Cyber Liberty]

But as a young Marine once told me  "It could be worse, you could be trapped in a burning car".

'Zackly.

[DB]

Perhaps Obamacare both decreased job availability by making employment more expensive and increased pain killer availability by making access to doctors less expensive to the unemployed.

[GtHawk]

Perhaps Obamacare both decreased job availability by making employment more expensive and increased pain killer availability by making access to doctors less expensive to the unemployed.

I did get care through MediCal for a short period before being certified disabled, and yes at the time it was free but I had paid taxes for decades so I considered it pre paid, and the interesting thing is that I got better care on Medi than the insurance I paid extra for while working I know for a fact that there are disability mills running in all the states and one of the first things they do in support of their diagnosis is prescribe pain or ant-depressant meds. I had a friend of family direct me o his doctor at a time when my insurance had expired and prior to Medi starting, I went one time and that was all it took for me to realize he was crook running a mill to scam insurance and Social Security.

[Cyber Liberty]

Perhaps Obamacare both decreased job availability by making employment more expensive and increased pain killer availability by making access to doctors less expensive to the unemployed.

That's a pretty insightful observation.

[Applewood]

Opioid abuse is the Democrats' crisis du jour.  Don't know about elsewhere, but here in PA, the Democrat governor and Democrat major city mayors are spending gobs of taxpayer dollars on this "crisis."  Can't turn on the tv without seeing almost non-stop advertising and supposed public affairs programming -- which is in reality, propaganda and hype.   Bogus stuff like this piece is what fuels the Dems' latest spending spree.