Audit: State Had Errors in Prescription Drug Oversight

Audit: State had errors in prescription drug oversight

Filed under: prescription drug abuse

The comptroller's office audit found that the state Department of Health didn't adequately oversee the prevention of prescription drug abuse. The health department's Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement is the lead office charged with combating the illegal …
Read more on Press & Sun-Bulletin

 

Officials: Prescription drug abuse on the rise in Iowa

Filed under: prescription drug abuse

“We've seen the devastating impact prescription drugs can have on young people,” said April Rovero, founder and CEO of the National Coalition against Prescription Drug Abuse. “We didn't begin to see the depth of the problem until after my son's death …
Read more on UI The Daily Iowan

 

Their View: Multifaceted approach needed to reduce prescription drug abuse

Filed under: prescription drug abuse

Recently I was invited to attend the National Governors Association Policy Academy on Prescription Drug Abuse Reduction. As the chair of the Health and Human Services Subcommittee on Behavioral Health, I felt this was a terrific opportunity to learn …
Read more on Las Cruces Sun-News

 


 

Mother’s Battle With Prescription Drug Addiction, Doctor says no to abusers – The battle against prescription drug abuse is one that is not only being waged by those fighting their addictions but also by doctors, healthcare organizations and law enforcement. Illegal use of prescription drugs has increased so much that, this year, the FDA named it the United States’ fastest growing drug problem. April Schalow, a Holland mother of four, agrees telling WNWO “it’s a sickness…you use these drugs to cover up pain.” A recovering addict herself, Schalow initially started taking painkillers for a back injury but continued to take them even after she healed. “[My doctor] kept upping it until I was taking 6 a day and it was Vicodin,” Schalow recalls. In order to curb this kind of prescription drug abuse, by both doctors writing the prescriptions and the patients taking them, both the state of Michigan and Ohio have implemented their own prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMP). Both the Michigan Automated Prescription System (MAPS) and Ohio’s Automated Rx Reporting System (OARRS) work the same way; requiring physicians and pharmacists enter prescriptions into a database that helps officials keep an eye on who’s getting controlled substances and from where. Likewise, doctors and other medical professionals can use the systems to make sure a patient is not “doctor shopping”. In Toledo, Dr. Donald Weathers has gone a step further to protect his practice from prescription pill abusers. According to Weathers’ receptionist, the doctor doesn’t take on new

 

From Twitter:

#deadlydose on CNN is some scary stuff. Sad to think that WV and KY are some of the worst states for prescription drug abuse. – by ashleefilkinsWV (Ashlee Filkins)

From Twitter:

Stop giving away your pain medicine to family members for their pain, this is one way prescription drug abuse begins. – by PastorRandyl01 (PastorRandyl01)

From Twitter:

#Recovery #12steps Novus Medical Detox Center Lauds New Government IT Program Targeting … http://t.co/4ggcHdae – by Xpillhead (Brad K)