Health News
- Florida-to-appalachia 'pill Pipeline' Appears To Be Shriveling
Attorneys general from Florida and Kentucky say the prescription pill pipeline between the two states is beginning to close, reports Bill Estep of the Lexington Herald-Leader. They credit new programs and rules in Florida, but Kentucky AG Jack Conway...
- Three Florida Women Put Pressure On Sunshine State's "pill Mills," Legislators, Governor
As Kentucky officials ask Florida legislators to crack down on pill mills, three Florida women have started a grassroots effort to spread awareness about the problem. Nurse Renee Doyle, respiratory therapist Joy Saghy and nurse Janet Colbert, all of whom...
- Kentucky Is 'ground Zero' In The War On Drugs, Rogers Says
A Kentucky congressman called "ground zero" in the war against drugs Wednesday as officials gathered in London for the regional meeting of the UNITE Coalition. In attendance was director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, Gil Kerlikowke,...
- Ky. Officials Ramp Up Criticism Of Plan To Cancel Florida Drug Monitoring; U.s. Drug Czar Says Fla. Governor May Lack Facts
Kentucky officials continue to rail against Florida Gov. Rick Scott's proposal to cancel his state's prescription-drug monitoring program, a move they argue would keep the pipeline open for Kentucky dealers who head to the Sunshine State...
- Drug Czar Coming To Kentucky To Look At Prescription Pill Abuse
The White House drug czar will visit Kentucky next week to investigate prescription pill abuse, a problem he called "heartbreaking." In a four-day tour, Gil Kerlikowske, President Obama's chief advisor on drug issues, will meet with law-enforcement...
Health News
Drug czar offers plan to cut abuse of oxycodone, related drugs
The White House drug czar announced today he wants to cut misuse of oxycodone and other opioid drugs by 15 percent in the next five years, and revealed his strategy for how to make that happen.
Gil Kerlikowske, the national drug policy director, wants to see a national education campaign, stepped-up law enforcement and pill-tracking databases in all 50 states, "with particular emphasis on Florida, where 85 percent of all oxycodone pills in the nation are prescribed," Curt Anderson of The Associated Press reports. The strategy also calls for more training for the more than 1 million doctors who are authorized to prescribe the drugs, though that move would need to be approved by Congress.
Details of the strategy come just a few months after Kerlikowske, right, visited Kentucky and surrounding states to assess the problem. His visit was preceded by in-depth reports on prescription pill abuse by The Courier-Journal and The Lexington Herald-Leader. Kentucky legislators, including U.S. Rep. Harold "Hal" Rogers, spoke to Kerlikowske candidly about the problem during his visit and voiced their displeasure about plans to nix a monitoring database in Florida. Florida Gov. Rick Scott has since reversed course and will support the implementation of a drug monitoring problem in his state.
Though a 15 percent cut seems like a small goal, Letcher County Sheriff Danny Web supports the move. "Anything would help, because we're drowning in it up here in Eastern Kentucky," he said. Overdose deaths from painkillers have risen from under 4,000 in 2000 to more than 11,000 in 2007, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention numbers show. In Kentucky, more people die from prescription drug overdoses than traffic accidents. Nationally, the total exceeds that for fatal gunshots. (Read more)
- Florida-to-appalachia 'pill Pipeline' Appears To Be Shriveling
Attorneys general from Florida and Kentucky say the prescription pill pipeline between the two states is beginning to close, reports Bill Estep of the Lexington Herald-Leader. They credit new programs and rules in Florida, but Kentucky AG Jack Conway...
- Three Florida Women Put Pressure On Sunshine State's "pill Mills," Legislators, Governor
As Kentucky officials ask Florida legislators to crack down on pill mills, three Florida women have started a grassroots effort to spread awareness about the problem. Nurse Renee Doyle, respiratory therapist Joy Saghy and nurse Janet Colbert, all of whom...
- Kentucky Is 'ground Zero' In The War On Drugs, Rogers Says
A Kentucky congressman called "ground zero" in the war against drugs Wednesday as officials gathered in London for the regional meeting of the UNITE Coalition. In attendance was director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, Gil Kerlikowke,...
- Ky. Officials Ramp Up Criticism Of Plan To Cancel Florida Drug Monitoring; U.s. Drug Czar Says Fla. Governor May Lack Facts
Kentucky officials continue to rail against Florida Gov. Rick Scott's proposal to cancel his state's prescription-drug monitoring program, a move they argue would keep the pipeline open for Kentucky dealers who head to the Sunshine State...
- Drug Czar Coming To Kentucky To Look At Prescription Pill Abuse
The White House drug czar will visit Kentucky next week to investigate prescription pill abuse, a problem he called "heartbreaking." In a four-day tour, Gil Kerlikowske, President Obama's chief advisor on drug issues, will meet with law-enforcement...