Back to Show
PBS News Hour
How the opioid crisis became the biggest drug epidemic
Every day brings another story about the depth of the country’s opioid crisis. A rise of pain killer prescriptions from doctors and a pharmaceutical industry eager to boost sales in the 1990s sparked a wave of addiction that shot up by almost 500 percent in the last 15 years. As a prologue to our series covering the opioid crisis, “America Addicted,” William Brangham reports on how we got here.
Support Provided By

57:46
October 20, 2025 - PBS News Hour full episode

26:44
October 19, 2025 - PBS News Weekend full episode

26:44
October 18, 2025 - PBS News Weekend full episode

57:46
October 17, 2025 - PBS News Hour full episode

57:46
October 16, 2025 - PBS News Hour full episode

57:46
October 15, 2025 - PBS News Hour full episode

57:46
October 14, 2025 - PBS News Hour full episode

57:46
October 13, 2025 - PBS News Hour full episode

26:45
October 12, 2025 - PBS News Weekend full episode

26:45
October 11, 2025 - PBS News Weekend full episode

57:46
October 10, 2025 - PBS News Hour full episode

57:46
October 9, 2025 - PBS News Hour full episode