hillbilly heroin

English

Etymology

From its initial popularity in rural regions in Kentucky, West Virginia, and Ohio.

Pronunciation

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Noun

hillbilly heroin (uncountable)

1. (US slang, derogatory) Oxycodone (marketed as OxyContin), Percocet, or similar opiate drugs. [from early 2000s]
   • [2012 August 23, Conor Friedersdorf, quoting Chris Hedges and Joe Sacco, “What OxyContin Addicts in West Virginia Tell Us About the War on Drugs”, in The Atlantic‎^[1]:

     Drug overdoses are the leading cause of accidental death in West Virginia, and the state leads the country in fatal drug overdoses. OxyContin—nicknamed “hillbilly heroin”—is king.]

   • [2017 September 6, Brian Alexander, “When a Company Is Making Money From the Opioid Crisis”, in The Atlantic‎^[2]:

     In a year of big stories, the opioid crisis has become one of the biggest, though it’s been a problem since the early 2000s. Around then, people in Kentucky, West Virginia, and southeast Ohio started referring to Percocet, OxyContin, and Vicodin as “hillbilly heroin.”]