Opioid Nation: An American Epidemic

Opioid Nation: An American Epidemic is the Orlando edition of a multi-station documentary series produced by Graham Media Group, with each participating newsroom examining how the opioid crisis has affected its own community. Through the experiences of people in recovery, healthcare professionals, researchers, and families, this documentary explores the devastating toll of opioid addiction across Central Florida while examining the broader forces driving the epidemic.

The film traces the progression from prescription opioids to heroin and fentanyl, highlighting how increasingly potent drugs have transformed the crisis over time. It also explores the impact on children and families, including infants born with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome, the growing use of naloxone to reverse overdoses, and a range of recovery approaches designed to help people rebuild their lives.

About the Opioid Nation series: This documentary is one of several regional editions produced by Graham Media Group. Other participating stations created their own versions focused on the opioid crisis in their local communities, including Detroit (WDIV Local 4), Houston (KPRC 2), San Antonio (KSAT 12), Roanoke (WSLS 10), and Jacksonville (News4JAX).

"I want the people that are doing heroin, fentanyl, crack, cocaine, even alcohol, all the stuff they're doing, I want them to see exactly what they're doing to their family, particularly the children, but their entire family – it's total chaos and destruction."

"The most recent data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services show as the opioid crisis gets worse, more and more kids are being placed in foster care. Nationally, the numbers jumped 8% between 2012 and 2015 … 2.5 million children now live with relatives or family friends instead of their parents. Substance abuse was the reason for the removal of more than 32% of children in 2015."³

"Dr. Warren Bickel, leading the nation in studying characteristics of who's addicted to substances, his research shows how you see your future plays a role in addiction; he calls your outlook on life Future Time Perspective."

"[Archway Academy] It's a school for kids who've already been to rehab for things like opioid and other drug addictions and need a safe place to learn. We were created by a group of parents who had lost their children to addiction."

"If you are one of those people that are sitting there thinking, Oh, I've never seen any, addiction has never affected me, you need to take a closer look."

¹ While "100% pain-free" is a simplification, hospitals and physicians in the 2000s and early 2010s faced regulatory and financial pressure to aggressively manage pain through patient satisfaction measures. In 2012, CMS linked portions of hospital reimbursement to HCAHPS survey responses about pain control, a system critics argued contributed to opioid overprescribing before the pain questions were removed from payment calculations in 2018.
² Opioid risk assessment tools, such as the Opioid Risk Tool (ORT), are crucial for identifying potential for misuse before starting therapy. These tools, often self-administered, evaluate factors like personal/family history of addiction and psychiatric conditions to guide prescribing decisions, such as increasing monitoring or choosing alternative therapies
³ Research has linked the opioid crisis to major increases in foster care involvement and family disruption. A 2024 cohort study found foster care involvement among children experiencing parental opioid use disorder increased significantly between 2014 and 2020, while national data have also shown substantial increases in foster care entries involving parental drug use during the opioid epidemic.