Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/959985
wbjournal.com | April 2, 2018 | Worcester Business Journal 3 Webster • Dudley • Oxford • Auburn • Worcester • Shrewsbury Providing the best service to his customers so they succeed. At Webster Five, your success is important to us. Whether you're a small start-up or a large corporation, we offer all the financial tools, resources and progressive services you need to succeed. Make an appointment and tell Keith what's important to you. Visit web5.com/Keith or call 508.438.4712. What's important to Keith? Keith Kirkland, VP, Business Lending Officer KHJ23479_WEB-374_BuisLender_4.3x5.5_Keith_Mech2.indd 1 3/31/17 11:37 AM Editor, Brad Kane, bkane@wbjournal.com News Editor, Grant Welker, gwelker@wbjournal.com (Real estate, higher education) Staff Writers Zachary Comeau, zcomeau@wbjournal.com (Manufacturing) Emily Micucci, emicucci@wbjournal.com (Health care) Contributors Susan Shalhoub Livia Gershon Research Director, Stephanie Meagher, smeagher@nebusinessmedia.com Research Assistant, Heide Martin, hmartin@nebusinessmedia.com Production Director, Kira Beaudoin, kbeaudoin@wbjournal.com Associate Art Director, Mitchell Hayes, mhayes@wbjournal.com Senior Accounts Manager Matt Majikas, mmajikas@wbjournal.com Senior Accounts Manager Christine Juetten, cjuetten@wbjournal.com Senior Special Accounts Manager Mary Lynn Bosiak, mlbosiak@wbjournal.com Marketing & Events Manager Kris Prosser, kprosser@wbjournal.com Events & Marketing Intern Megan Irish, events@wbjournal.com Distribution and Database Coordinator A Guide to STUFF, a publication of New England Business Media Patty Harris, pharris@nebusinessmedia.com COO, Mary Rogers, mrogers@nebusinessmedia.com Accounting Manager, Valerie Clark, vclark@nebusinessmedia.com Accounting Assistant, Rae Rogers, rrogers@nebusinessmedia.com Collections Manager, Raki Zwiebel, rzwiebel@nebusinessmedia.com Human Resources, Jill Coran, jcoran@nebusinessmedia.com Publisher, CEO, Peter Stanton pstanton@nebusinessmedia.com Associate Publisher, Mark Murray mmurray@wbjournal.com President, Joseph Zwiebel jzwiebel@nebusinessmedia.com T he opioid epidemic is a complex and terrible crisis, which will require progressive thinking and systematic solutions to get under control. There are right and wrong ways to address this societal issue. As noted by a poll commenter in Staff Writer Emily Micucci's story on Page 12, legal opioid prescriptions can be a lifesaver for people in pain. Yet, those benefits are overshadowed by the number of people getting addicted to the opioid high, and – once they are unable to obtain or afford their prescriptions – addicts seek that same high through street drugs like heroin and are more vulnerable to overdoses. A total of 2,083 people in Massachusetts died in accidental opioid-related deaths in 2016, including 161 in Central Mass. One right way to address this problem is making the pharmaceutical companies accountable for their role in creating opioid addiction. As Micucci points out in her story, places like Worcester and Charlton are among a growing number of governments suing drugmakers for the community cost of fighting the epidemic: treatment, employee health care, police response to opioid-related crimes, etc. While the lawsuits could yield real dollars for Charlton and Worcester, that result is secondary. The primary goal should be to change the way drug companies market and sell their products, which – because a financial penalty is likely – will lead to greater disclosure of addictive potential. Now, pharmaceutical companies are not solely responsible for this crisis. By com- bining the results these lawsuits are trying to achieve with measures like limiting the amount of opioids doctors can prescribe, investing in treatment, and providing over- dose-reversing drugs to first responders, we can get this epidemic under control. One wrong way to address this crisis is to call for the death penalty for drug deal- ers. An arguably worse way is to tell people in a state that might vote for you in the 2020 presidential election that their opioid crisis is caused by the immigrant commu- nity in a state that definitely won't vote for you, as President Donald Trump told New Hampshire residents about Massachusetts Hit the opioid crisis on multiple fronts Worcester Business Journal (ISSN#1063-6595) is published bi-weekly, 24x per year, including 4 special issues in May, September, October, and December by New England Business Media. 172 Shrewsbury St., Worcester, MA 01604. Periodicals postage paid at Worcester, MA. Copyright 2018. All rights reserved. Postmaster: Please send address changes to: Worcester Business Journal, PO Box 330, Congers, NY 10920-9894. Subscriptions: Annual subscriptions are available for $54.95. For more information, please email wbjournal@ cambeywest.com or contact our circulation department at 845-267-3008. Fax: 845.267.3478 Advertising: For advertising information, please call Mark Murray at 508-755-8004 ext. 227. Fax: 508-755-8860. Worcester Business Journal accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts or materials and in general does not return them to the sender. Worcester Business Journal 172 Shrewsbury Street, Worcester, MA 01604 508-755-8004 tel. • 508-755-8860 fax www.wbjournal.com A division of: NEWS & ANALYSIS DEPARTMENTS 4 Central Mass. In Brief 5 Flash Poll 12 Focus on Health Care 16 The List: Largest hospitals 17 The Rainmaker 18 Know How 19 On the Move 20 Photo Finish 21 Opinion 22 Shop Talk: Darcy Schwartz, ArtReach 8 Hub of Innovation With an incubator and artist space joining an existing incubator and makerspace, the Printers Building in Downtown Worcester is becoming the center of the region's creative economy. 21 Worcester needs to aid homeless Viewpoint columnist Francis R. Carroll calls on the Worcester City Council to establish a permanent shelter for the city's 1,100 homeless. I N T H I S I S S U E Worcester Business Journal WBJ sanctuary cities last month. But people playing politics with deadly crises aren't really addressing – much less solving – the problem. That is why we need smart decisions made by our local leaders, interested in fighting a complex issue with a multi-pronged approach. - Brad Kane, editor W CORRECTION: Due to an editing error, the March 19 Viewpoint column "Voke/tech career development needs funding" indicated the Alliance for Vocational Technical Education was advocating to change existing laws to allow a single community to block voke/ tech expansion. The organization wants to prevent such situations.