The Opioid Effect: Inside Philadelphia’s Heroin Epidemic

Heroin use across the U.S. has become a deadly epidemic, and it’s caused in part by drugs that were designed to heal.

Prescription opioids are effective in treating pain, but they’re also highly addictive. For many, heroin is a cheaper, more accessible option.

Philadelphia is in the midst of an opioid epidemic. Vice went to the city to meet men who’ve formed a community through recovery, and took a ride through the largest open air heroin market on the east coast.