The election of Donald Trump as the President of the United States surprised a lot people. Naturally, there were many political, economic, and religious considerations that went into the debates, as is the case for any election. You’d expect, in general, for more conservative people to vote Republican just on principle, and certain areas of the country always tend to lean to one side or the other. One interesting fact that most people probably wouldn’t ever wonder about is how trends of opioid use correlated with which candidate people in certain areas voted for. As it turns out, counties that had high percentages of opioid use were significantly more likely to vote for Trump. What’s the connection?
A study published in the medical journal JAMA Network Open, led by the James S. Goodwin, chair of geriatrics at the University of Texas Medical Branch, examined data from the Census Bureau, the 2016 election, and Medicare Part D, which is a program that provides prescription drug benefits to the elderly and people with disabilities. They looked at people who had at least three months’ worth of opioid prescriptions. As Goodwin pointed out, longer term legal prescription use is tied to misuse of opioids.
The study results showed that in counties with a higher than average number of opioid prescriptions, 60 percent of those who voted in the election went for Donald Trump. Counties with lower than average opioid prescription use only voted for him by 39 percent. They also took into account the unemployment rate, median income, education level, and religious service attendance, which they said accounted for 66 percent of the connection between opioid use and Trump votes.
The most likely explanation here involves a wide variety of factors. Opioid abuse is more prevalent in rural communities. The people in these areas tend to be older, have more health problems (and less access to quality health care), and be poorer than average. The young people, meanwhile, see the lack of opportunity and turn to drugs instead. Between 1999 to 2015, the opioid death rates in rural areas quadrupled among people 18 to 25 years old and tripled for females.
There’s probably no direct link between opioid use and Trump supporters; rather, it’s the fact that there are more people who abuse opioids in rural areas, and people in rural areas are more likely to vote for conservative candidates. Typically, these people are more fiscally conservative because of the relative poverty they live in, and they’re more socially conservative because they tend to be more religious. It’s also possible that these rural areas, overwhelmed by the opioid crisis and lacking in options for education and employment, might have just been searching for some sort of drastic change in the hopes that it would improve the status quo.
If you or a loved one need help with quitting drugs or alcohol, consider Asana Recovery. We offer medical detox, along with both residential and outpatient programs, and you’ll be supervised by a highly trained staff of medical professionals, counselors, and therapists. Call us any time at (949) 438-4504 to get started.
