Two Epidemics and a Pandemic: The Collision of Prescription Drug Misuse and Racism during COVID-19. Issue 5 (20th October 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Brown, P.; Watts, V.; Hanna, M.; Rizk, M.; Tucker, E.; Saddlemire, A.; Peteet, B.
• Is Part Of: Journal of psychoactive drugs. Volume 53:Issue 5(2021)
• Page Start: 413
• Page End: 421
• Publication Date: 2021-10-20
• Subjects: Prescription drug misuse -- perceived racial discrimination -- racism -- COVID-19; Hallucinogenic drugs -- Periodicals; Drug abuse -- Periodicals; Hallucinogens -- Periodicals; Psychotropic Drugs -- Periodicals; Drogues -- Périodiques; Hallucinogènes -- Périodiques; Electronic journals; 616.86
• DOI: 10.1080/02791072.2021.1992048
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0279-1072

Abstract

ABSTRACT: The present study investigated the relationship between perceived racial discrimination and prescription drug misuse (PDM) among Asian, Black, and Latinx Americans during the COVID-19 crisis. U.S. racial/ethnic minorities may have been uniquely affected by two national and one global pandemic: the opioid crisis, racism, and COVID-19. Opioid death rates increased among many groups prior to the pandemic. This country witnessed an increase in racialized acts against people of color across the spectrum in the spring and summer months of the world's COVID-19 outbreak. While studies have shown a clear link between perceived racial discrimination and substance abuse outside of the global pandemic, no identified studies have done so against the backdrop of a global health pandemic. Separate hierarchical regressions revealed a significant association between perceived racial discrimination and PDM for Black Americans, Asian Americans, and Latinx individuals. Findings build on the scant literature on PDM in diverse samples and establish a relationship between perceived racial discrimination and PDM, as previously identified for other abused substances. Future post-pandemic substance misuse interventions should consider the influence of perceived racial discrimination as they help individuals recover from the aftermath of this stressful trifecta.