When OxyContin was first released in the United States in 1996, it was heralded as a pain-reduction miracle. It was intended to provide patients with chronic pain with long-lasting comfort as a time-release version of oxycodone. But as soon as its enormous potential for abuse became apparent, it caused widespread addiction and added to the opioid crisis. Although OxyContin is still a vital tool for treating severe pain under medical supervision, it has come to represent the intricate relationship between medical advancements and public health issues in the United States.
