It affects a person's health in a myriad of ways. I, personally, have a criminal record because of it, and that puts many things out of my reach. It doesn't matter that I work very hard and have been a contributing member of society for more than a decade. I am on boards and do a lot of good for my community.
From a health standpoint, drug users are at risk. I lose people I know every week to the opioid crisis. Yesterday, I found out that a friend of mine had died because she was forced to buy painkillers on the black market.