In just a few short years after it was introduced, OxyContin became the best-selling narcotic in the United States. As of 2001, the drug's manufacturer, Purdue Pharma, was earning an estimated $1 billion a year from sales of OxyContin alone. But as quickly as the drug became popular for legitimate use as a highly effective painkiller, its popularity surged among drug abusers.

Ironically, OxyContin, which was approved by the FDA in 1995, was originally thought to pose a low risk of abuse because of its controlled-release design. The protective outer coating slows digestion of the pill and allows a large dose of oxycodone to be released in small amounts over 12 hours. However, abusers quickly discovered that by crushing or chewing the pills, they could release the oxycodone and snort the powder or mix it with water and inject it for a fast high. This method proved especially...