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Lee County, Virginia is located in the southwest corner of Appalachia.

At the turn of the 20th century, its economy was booming.

The coal and rail industries were thriving, people were moving in, houses were being built,

things were looking up.

But by the turn of the 21st century, Lee County looked different.

A lot of its buildings were abandoned, the coal mining industry was struggling, and many

of its residents were hooked on opioids.

One of those residents was Arnold Fein, McCully.

This was a man in his 70s, he had been a full-time coal miner.

For years, Arnold was the guy who got stuff done.

I asked his daughter what she remembered throwing up and she said my memory of him was he worked.

Coal mining is not an easy job, and Arnold suffered a lot of injuries at work, so he was

no stranger to doctors.

Treated numerous times with immediate release opioids and had always been able to get

off.

Then, one day, he saw a new doctor prescribed him a drug called oxycat.

In this drug, turned him into a non-functioning person.

...