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AMES, Iowa - The United States is suffering from several different simultaneous opioid epidemics, rather than just a single crisis, according to an academic study of deaths caused by drug overdoses.

There's been alarming data about the quality of life in the United States. First, a new study published last week in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that life expectancy in the U.S. has decreased and that working-age Americans are less likely to live to retirement age than previous generations.

In this episode, @danielrskinner interviewed Chad Jester, Vice President of Corporate Citizenship and President of the Nationwide Foundation, about Denial, Ohio, a public service campaign sponsored by the Ohio Opioid Alliance, a group of organizations from around the state.

Drug companies still face a lot of questions about their role in the nation's opioid epidemic.

In the United States, drugmakers have flooded the market with powerful, sophisticated opioids. And that's fueled an epidemic of addiction. But across Africa many patients can't afford even mild painkillers — let alone medications to help people in extreme pain.

Opioid misuse and deaths are increasing in the United States. In 2017, Ohio had the second highest overdose rates in the US, with the city of Cincinnati experiencing a 50% rise in opioid overdoses since 2015.