Labor market insertion as a way of combatting the root causes of fentanyl addiction

Abstract

Fentanyl addiction is a latent epidemic in the United States that claims thousands of lives annually. This crisis has been driven by population and economic factors. A linear regression model was used to quantify the impact and significance of some of these variables on the magnitude of the epidemic, measured by the number of fentanyl overdose deaths per-100,000 inhabitants. A sample of 29 U.S. states was taken. Three statistically significant variables, as mentioned in the literature, were used: per capita health expenditure, the unemployment rate, and the percentage of the population between 15 and 34 years old. Coefficients were obtained that relate a series of independent variables to the mentioned measure.  The most relevant finding was a positive coefficient of 6.620 for each percentage point increase in the unemployment rate. The cause of this result could be explained through the theory of the availability of alternative rewards in the development of addictions. This suggests that public policy aimed at job placement could be effective in addressing the crisis.