Pain is horrible. I've witnessed it first hand with my dad and my father-n-law. After a period of time, it'll wear a man down to nothing more than a whimpering shell.
Addicts make up a very small percentage of folks in the grand scheme. Knukka-heads who use not because of a specific treatment, but recreationally.
At the end of the day though, the hypocrisy is deafening. Legislators spend a day figuring out how to deny the population of needed medications and at the end of the day slap each other on the back for a job well done...then meet at the local pub to knock back a few scotch and sodas.
Alcohol...the deadliest, most abused drug on the planet. And it's perfectly legal. lol
“What I fear is the gubbamint will restrict pain killers in a draconian way that when people truly need them, they will not be able to.”
That is exactly what is happening.