A Bridgeport addiction expert says the fentanyl epidemic is making it difficult for people who genuinely need the drug to get it.

"Fentanyl has long been the gold standard for treating severe chronic pain -- but cancer patients and other people who genuinely need this potent analgesic are being turned away by pharmacies and doctors," said John Hamilton, CEO of Liberation Programs, a Bridgeport nonprofit whose mission is to help people struggling with addiction.

"With so many people dying as a result of fentanyl, many doctors and pharmacies just don't want the headache of dealing with it outside of a hospital setting," Hamilton said.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) says an illicit form of fentanyl is being manufactured overseas and funneled into the U.S. for sale on the street, where it's killing people at a staggering rate.

But the prescription form of fentanyl continues to be used as a reliable and highly effective treatment for post-surgical and chronic intractable pain, Hamilton said.

"I've been taking fentanyl legally and properly for decades, and it's the only drug that works for me," said Raven Smith, of Bridgeport, who is being treated by a doctor in New York for severe chronic pain.

"The problem is no pharmacy wants to deal with me because of all the baggage that comes with fentanyl nowadays," Smith said.

Hamilton says this "fentanyl backlash" is yet another tragic consequence of the fentanyl epidemic.