Experts say people are more comfortable abusing prescription drugs than meth, heroin

An armed robbery turned into a deadly shoot out in Rexburg over the weekend.

According to police, the deceased, Daryl Myler, wasn’t after the money. He was stealing prescription medication.

Statistics show two thirds of all drugs that are abused are from a pharmacy or over the counter. Part of that is because they’re easy for people to get.

But that’s not the only reason why prescription meds are so appealing to people.
Stephen Stokes, professor of sociology at BYU Idaho said they don’t carry the stigma that heroin or meth carries. He said people can justify it because it’s medicine, so it’s supposed to fix things.

Pain killers used to be known as the poor man’s heroin, but now, heroin is more potent and cheaper than prescription drugs, Stokes said. He said some people feel more comfortable using a drug they can get from a drug store.

“People have an aversion about using something illegal. They’re more likely to try something that seems to be more legitimate, because it’s sold through prescription or across the counter,” said stokes.

Stokes said people who get hooked on these drugs let the idea of getting the next fix consume their lives.

“This must have been a very important thing for this man to be able to get drugs, to make him change his standards to the point that he would go and do something that he’s probably believed all of his life he shouldn’t do,” said Stokes.

That mindset is a reason why pharmacy robberies are so common.

“Unfortunately, I think it’s going to be an ongoing problem. Just something that’s never going to fully go away. Just hopefully with tighter control with these types of medications and things, it might become a lesser problem,” said Lance Torngren, a pharmacist at Teton Pharmacy.