Meth has been a disproportionately white drug, but it strikes in areas of poverty where the parents of addicts are already the underclass, and can't drum up sympathy with the 'power structures' of their community. (Think judges, police, town officials.)

Opiates often hit middle class or wealthy families. Thats the real difference: This is a drug epiedemic that is crawling into areas of society with political capital. Parents of addicts or the addicts themselves know or work with the people who can show empathy when creating & enforcing policy.