“The Drug Sellers Were Better Organized than the Government”: A Qualitative Study of Participants’ Views of Drug Markets during COVID-19 and Other Big Events
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
3. Results
3.1. Sociodemographic Background
3.2. Access to Drugs after Maria
3.2.1. Price
3.2.2. Quality
3.3. Access to Drug Markets during the COVID-19 Lockdown
3.3.1. Quality
3.3.2. Price
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
- Friedman, S.R.; Rossi, D.; Braine, N. Theorizing “Big Events” as a potential risk environment for drug use, drug-related harm and HIV epidemic outbreaks. Int. J. Drug Policy 2009, 20, 283–291. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Rhodes, T. Risk environments and drug harms: A social science for harm reduction approach. Int. J. Drug Policy 2009, 20, 193–201. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Friedman, S.R.; Rossi, D. Some Musings about Big Events and the Past and Future of Drug Use and of HIV and Other Epidemics. Subst. Use Misuse 2015, 50, 899–902. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Deilamizade, A.; Esmizade, S. Economic Sanctions against Iran, and Drug Use in Tehran, Iran: A 2013 Pilot Study. Subst. Use Misuse 2015, 50, 859–868. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Mackey, T.K.; Strathdee, S.A. Big Events and Risks to Global Substance Using Populations: Unique Threats and Common Challenges. Subst. Use Misuse 2015, 50, 885–890. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Nikolopoulos, G.K.; Sypsa, V.; Bonovas, S.; Paraskevis, D.; Malliori-Minerva, M.; Hatzakis, A.; Friedman, S.R. Big Events in Greece and HIV Infection Among People Who Inject Drugs. Subst. Use Misuse 2015, 50, 825–838. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Zolopa, C.; Høj, S.B.; Minoyan, N.; Bruneau, J.; Makarenko, I.; Larney, S. Ageing and older people who use illicit opioids, cocaine or methamphetamine: A scoping review and literature map. Addiction 2022, 117, 2168–2188. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Pardo, B. Supplying synthetic opioids during a pandemic: An early look at North America. Int. J. Drug Policy 2020, 93, 102833. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Otiashvili, D.; Mgebrishvili, T.; Beselia, A.; Vardanashvili, I.; Dumchev, K.; Kiriazova, T.; Kirtadze, I. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on illicit drug supply, drug-related behaviour of people who use drugs and provision of drug related services in Georgia: Results of a mixed methods prospective cohort study. Harm Reduct. J. 2022, 19, 25. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Scherbaum, N.; Bonnet, U.; Hafermann, H.; Schifano, F.; Bender, S.; Grigoleit, T.; Kuhn, J.; Nyhuis, P.; Preuss, U.W.; Reymann, G.; et al. Availability of Illegal Drugs During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Western Germany. Front. Psychiatry 2021, 12, 648273. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. EMCDDA Trends Spotter Briefing. Illicit Drug Markets and Supply in the Western Balkans: Impact of COVID-19. 2021. Available online: https://www.emcdda.europa.eu/system/files/publications/13888/trendspotter-impact-covid19-drug-markets-supply-in-the-western-balkans.pdf (accessed on 3 January 2023).
- Price, O.; Man, N.; Bruno, R.; Dietze, P.; Salom, C.; Lenton, S.; Grigg, J.; Gibbs, D.; Wilson, T.; Degenhardt, L.; et al. Changes in illicit drug use and markets with the COVID-19 pandemic and associated restrictions: Findings from the Ecstasy and Related Drugs Reporting System, 2016–2020. Addiction 2021, 117, 182–194. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Barratt, M.J.; Aldridge, J. No magic pocket: Buying and selling on drug cryptomarkets in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and social restrictions. Int. J. Drug Policy 2020, 83, 102894. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Bergeron, A.; Décary-Hétu, D.; Giommoni, L. Preliminary findings of the impact of COVID-19 on drugs crypto markets. Int. J. Drug Policy 2020, 83, 102870. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Giommoni, L. Why we should all be more careful in drawing conclusions about how COVID-19 is changing drug markets. Int. J. Drug Policy 2020, 83, 102834. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Cepeda, A.; Valdez, A.; Kaplan, C.; Hill, L.E. Patterns of substance use among Hurricane Katrina evacuees in Houston, Texas. Disasters 2010, 34, 426–446. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Dunlap, E.; Golub, A. Drug markets during the Katrina disaster. Disaster Prev. Manag. Int. J. 2011, 20, 251–265. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Dunlap, E.; Johnson, B.D.; Morse, E. Illicit Drug Markets Among New Orleans Evacuees Before and Soon After Hurricane Katrina. J. Drug Issues 2007, 37, 981–1006. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Kotarba, J.A.; Fackler, J.; Johnson, B.D.; Dunlap, E. The Melding of Drug Markets in Houston After Katrina: Dealer and User Perspectives. Subst. Use Misuse 2010, 45, 1390–1405. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Pouget, E.R.; Sandoval, M.; Nikolopoulos, G.K.; Friedman, S.R. Immediate Impact of Hurricane Sandy on People Who Inject Drugs in New York City. Subst. Use Misuse 2015, 50, 878–884. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Abdul-Quader, A.S.; Heckathorn, D.D.; McKnight, C.; Bramson, H.; Nemeth, C.; Sabin, K.; Gallagher, K.; Jarlais, D.C.D. Effectiveness of Respondent-Driven Sampling for Recruiting Drug Users in New York City: Findings from a Pilot Study. J. Urban Health 2006, 83, 459–476. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Broadhead, R.S.; Heckathorn, D.D.; Weakliem, D.L.; Anthony, D.L.; Madray, H.; Mills, R.J.; Hughes, J. Harnessing peer networks as an instrument for AIDS prevention: Results from a peer-driven intervention. Public Health Rep. 1998, 113, 42–57. [Google Scholar]
- Magnani, R.; Sabin, K.; Saidel, T.; Heckathorn, D. Review of sampling hard-to-reach and hidden populations for HIV surveillance. Aids 2005, 19, S67–S72. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Abadie, R.; Welch-Lazoritz, M.; Gelpi-Acosta, C.; Reyes, J.C.; Dombrowski, K. Understanding differences in HIV/HCV prevalence according to differentiated risk behaviors in a sample of PWID in rural Puerto Rico. Harm Reduct J. 2016, 13, 10. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Saldana, J. The Coding Manual for Qualitative Researchers; Sage; Arizona State University: Tempe, AZ, USA, 2013. [Google Scholar]
- LeCompte, M. Analysis and Interpretation of Ethnographic Data: A Mixed Methods Approach; Altamira: Oklahoma City, OK, USA, 2013. [Google Scholar]
- Aponte-Melendez, Y.; Mateu-Gelabert, P.; Fong, C.; Eckhardt, B.; Kapadia, S.; Marks, K. The impact of COVID-19 on people who inject drugs in New York City: Increased risk and decreased access to services. Harm Reduct. J. 2021, 18, 118. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Ciccarone, D. The rise of illicit fentanyls, stimulants and the fourth wave of the opioid overdose crisis. Curr. Opin. Psychiatry 2021, 34, 344–350. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Nolan, M.L.; Shamasunder, S.; Colon-Berezin, C.; Kunins, H.V.; Paone, D. Increased Presence of Fentanyl in Cocaine-Involved Fatal Overdoses: Implications for Prevention. J. Urban Health 2019, 96, 49–54. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- O’Donnell, J.; Gladden, R.M.; Goldberger, B.A.; Mattson, C.L.; Kariisa, M. Notes from the Field: Opioid-Involved Overdose Deaths with Fentanyl or Fentanyl Analogs Detected—28 States and the District of Columbia, July 2016–December 2018. MMWR. Morb. Mortal. Wkly. Rep. 2020, 69, 271–273. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Friedman, J.; Akre, S. COVID-19 and the Drug Overdose Crisis: Uncovering the Deadliest Months in the United States, January–July 2020. Am. J. Public Health 2021, 111, 1284–1291. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Wakeman, S.E.; Green, T.C.; Rich, J. An overdose surge will compound the COVID-19 pandemic if urgent action is not taken. Nat. Med. 2020, 26, 819–820. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Reyes, J.C.; Negrón, J.L.; Colón, H.M.; Padilla, A.M.; Millán, M.Y.; Matos, T.D.; Robles, R.R. The Emerging of Xylazine as a New Drug of Abuse and its Health Consequences among Drug Users in Puerto Rico. J. Urban Health 2012, 89, 519–526. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Friedman, J.; Montero, F.; Bourgois, P.; Wahbi, R.; Dye, D.; Goodman-Meza, D.; Shover, C. Xylazine spreads across the US: A growing component of the increasingly synthetic and polysubstance overdose crisis. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2022, 233, 109380. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Pardo, B.; Taylor, J.; Caulkins, J.; Reuter, P.; Kilmer, B. The dawn of a new synthetic opioid era: The need for innovative interventions. Addiction 2020, 116, 1304–1312. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Abadie, R.; Gelpi-Acosta, C.; Davila, C.; Rivera, A.; Welch-Lazoritz, M.; Dombrowski, K. “It Ruined My Life”: The effects of the War on Drugs on people who inject drugs (PWID) in rural Puerto Rico. Int J Drug Policy. 2018, 51, 121–127. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Beletsky, L.; Davis, C.S. Today’s fentanyl crisis: Prohibition’s Iron Law, revisited. Int. J. Drug Policy 2017, 46, 156–159. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Cooper, H.L.; Cloud, D.H.; Fanucchi, L.C.; Lofwall, M.; Young, A.M. Dismantling War on Drugs Policies in COVID-19’s Aftermath. Am. J. Public Health 2022, 112, S24–S27. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- VANDU; WAHRS; BCAPOM; Maynard, R.; Jozaghi, E. The drug war must end: The right to life, liberty and security of the person during the COVID-19 pandemic for people who use drugs. Harm Reduct. J. 2021, 18, 21. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Earp, B.D.; Lewis, J.; Hart, C.L.; Reform, W.B.A.A.P.F.D.P. Racial Justice Requires Ending the War on Drugs. Am. J. Bioeth. 2021, 21, 4–19. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Uzwiak, B.A.; Hudgins, A.; Pizzicato, L.N. Legacies of the war on drugs: Next of kin of persons who died of opioid overdose and harm reduction interventions in Philadelphia. Int. J. Drug Policy 2021, 97, 103351. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Garrett, L. The Next Pandemic. Foreign Aff. 2005, 84, 3. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Wenham, C.; Kavanaugh, M.; Torres, I.; Yamey, G. Preparing for the next pandemic. BMJ 2021, 373, n1295. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Wallace, B.; Pagan, F.; Pauly, B. The implementation of overdose prevention sites as a novel and nimble response during an illegal drug overdose public health emergency. Int. J. Drug Policy 2019, 66, 64–72. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Roxburgh, A.; Jauncey, M.; Day, C.; Bartlett, M.; Cogger, S.; Dietze, P.; Nielsen, S.; Latimer, J.; Clark, N. Adapting harm reduction services during COVID-19: Lessons from the supervised injecting facilities in Australia. Harm Reduct. J. 2021, 18, 20. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- McNeil, R.; Fleming, T.; Mayer, S.; Barker, A.; Mansoor, M.; Betsos, A.; Austin, T.; Parusel, S.; Ivsins, A.; Boyd, J. Implementation of Safe Supply Alternatives During Intersecting COVID-19 and Overdose Health Emergencies in British Columbia, Canada, 2021. Am. J. Public Health 2022, 112, S151–S158. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Dunlop, A.; Lokuge, B.; Masters, D.; Sequeira, M.; Saul, P.; Dunlop, G.; Ryan, J.; Hall, M.; Ezard, N.; Haber, P.; et al. Challenges in maintaining treatment services for people who use drugs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Harm Reduct. J. 2020, 17, 26. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
Disclaimer/Publisher’s Note: The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of MDPI and/or the editor(s). MDPI and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content. |
© 2023 by the author. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Share and Cite
Abadie, R. “The Drug Sellers Were Better Organized than the Government”: A Qualitative Study of Participants’ Views of Drug Markets during COVID-19 and Other Big Events. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20, 1295. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20021295
Abadie R. “The Drug Sellers Were Better Organized than the Government”: A Qualitative Study of Participants’ Views of Drug Markets during COVID-19 and Other Big Events. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2023; 20(2):1295. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20021295
Chicago/Turabian StyleAbadie, Roberto. 2023. "“The Drug Sellers Were Better Organized than the Government”: A Qualitative Study of Participants’ Views of Drug Markets during COVID-19 and Other Big Events" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 20, no. 2: 1295. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20021295