Prescription Drug Addiction And Death Rampant In Utah / US Military / Should we put up with this?
Ic
http://www.free-articles-zone.com/article/196730/Prescription%20Drug%20Addiction%20And%20Death%20Rampant%20In%20Utah
A recent editorial in the Salt Lake Tribune on the dangers of
prescription drugs suggests that in the five days from when it was
written to when it was delivered to readers, five more people will
have died from prescription drug addiction or abuse.
The editorial says: “By the time it lands in your driveway, the odds
are that five Utahns will have perished, that five families will be
grieving, children will be orphaned, spouses will be widowed, and
parents will be preparing to bury a child, all because of prescription
drugs.”
The specific drugs found most dangerous in Utah are the same drugs
that are driving prescription drug addiction and deaths all across
America -- legal opioid and narcotic pain relievers like Vicodin,
Lortab, Percocet, fentanyl, hydrocodone, and the two biggest narcotic
killer-painkillers in America, OxyContin and methadone.
Yet in spite of the numbers of people in Utah dying from prescription
drug addiction, overdose and abuse, there has been little public
outcry, or demands that something be done about it.
“If child molesters or drunken drivers or cultists were killing 300
Utahns a year, imagine the clamor,” the newspaper says. “But this, for
the most part, has been a silent epidemic.”
The Utah Department of Health has decided to take a proactive approach
to the gorwing problem of prescription drug addiction and abuse by
intensifying its multimedia public education campaign. The slogan for
the advertising messages, which warn of the dangers of prescription
drugs, is “Use Only as Directed”.
“The slogan is short, punchy, to the point and, hopefully, effective,”
the Tribune says. “If Utahns would simply follow that rule for their
prescription medications, there would be a lot less work for the
medical examiner, a lot more room at the morgue, a lot less mourning.”
The paper reports that narcotic painkillers are “equal-opportunity
killers. Half of the victims are male, half female. They range in age
from 15 to 80. Most have, or have had, a prescription for the drug
that did them in.”
Deaths from prescription drug mishaps have grown at an alarming rate,
and are now the number one cause of accidental deaths in the state,
exceeding even traffic accidents. A decade ago, about 40 to 50 people
died each year in the state from prescription drug overdoses or deadly
combinations of prescribed medications. Last year, 320 lost their
lives -- nearly one a day.
The same picture is emerging across the country, as state after state
reports sharp increases in prescription drug addiction, abuse, and
deaths.
Pulling no punches, the Tribune editorial points the finger at
everyone involved in the prescription drug supply chain. Physicians,
pharmacists, pharmaceutical companies, the health insurance industry
and drug consumers themselves, all need to share the blame.
Doctors play too fast and loose with the prescription pad, and
pharmacists can fail to provide verbal warnings or detect forged
prescriptions. Drug manufacturers offer physician’s incentives for
prescribing their drugs, which is a sore point right now with congress
and many states. Some insurance policies encourage use of inexpensive
opioids instead of non-narcotic pain relievers, which could be
effective and far less dangerous. And finally, consumers fail to
follow the most important advice of all: “Use only as directed.”
Pain killers are killing more than pain in Utah and across America.
They’re killing people, hopes, and dreams. Utah has set up a web site,
www.useonlyasdirected.org, to help promote the awareness campaign to
reduce prescription drug addiction, abuse and untimely deaths.
If you or someone you know is suffering from prescription drug
addiction or abuse, call a medical drug detox counselor right away and
get some solid, professional advice.
[][]
Prescription Drug Addiction Increasing In US Military
http://www.free-articles-zone.com/article/194784/Prescription%20Drug%20Addiction%20Increasing%20In%20US%20Military
Doctors are relying too heavily on narcotic pain relievers for US
troops, says a military pain management specialist, raising concerns
about the drugs’ potential for abuse and prescription drug addiction.
“You don’t have to throw narcotics at people to start managing pain,”
said Army Col. Chester “Trip” Buckenmaier III, director of the Acute
Pain Service Management Initiative at Walter Reed Army Medical Center
in Washington. Buckenmaier has pioneered alternative approaches to
treat the pain of wounded soldiers evacuated from the battlefield to
help avoid the risks of abuse, dependence and prescription drug
addiction.
[][]
The fake "Dr" Laura: Nov 23, 2008 - Tea Fire perps: "It's
interesting that little has been mentioned about the Tea House being
on private property. As I understand it, there is a locked gate one
must crawl under/over to gain entrance in order to trespass on this
privately owned property. And where does the wood come from for the
bonfire? It would seem this 'outing' would require a lot of effort and
pre-planning," is one of hundreds of comments on one of the local blog
sites. More» [BEHIND A PAYWALL]
# Nov 20, 2008 -
Holiday ad campaign to ask: Why believe in God? The "God" wars: Ads
proclaiming,
# Nov 16, 2008 -
Don't enable or rescue errant children
http://tiny.cc/tattKING
"Don't enable or rescue errant children" or buy errant adult child a
Screaming Eagle Dyna... ;-)
We all know according to Ms Laura, her son [Deryk, former corp
associate and current benefactor] is a saintly virginal role model for
the "family values" corp http://www.takeontheday.com/ and he behaves
according to the standards of their book publishers & advertisers?
Trained to kill "Godless crazy people like me [Deryk MySpace]" is the
way to sell their brand? As if that debacle didn't disgrace the
military and all of America. If for no other reason the photos of
Deryk in Afghanistan when he was representing American taxpayers.
DISGRACED.
http://tiny.cc/kingPAGE Your money at work. http://tiny.cc/kingPAGE194
The Deryk MySpace was filled with frustration and murderous rage.
Anxious to return home
" I will not allow it. It will not go unpunished.15months. And we
will be home. And we will give GOD a reason to drown the earth once
more. With Love Deryk muah" dated May 15, 2007
How does the Army help PTSD victims?
The rumors of typical drunken debauchery and sexual trysts with
Deryk's 20 something peers just can't be. Of course, Laura has no
reason to keep her public "up to speed" on any aspect of Afghanistan
or military to do with alcohol, drugs or addiction.
The totally useless Santa Barbara News-Press A2 remains as useless as
ever.
Laura needed to ask in regard to the Tea Fire "And where does the wood
come from for the bonfire?"
It is incredulous the names aren't released, but the police may also
have a point. Laura Schlessinger needs to look at her own house of
perps and stop covering up crimes. She isn't about to teach her son
accountability and it's fine to her that the military protects Deryk
when he's the perp... go figure with all the Tea Fire stories, she
goes with going after the names of perpetrators. When it's her perp,
she asks for privacy and claims Deryk just wants privacy. His
KingOf*Hearts* wrote to America, he does want to be heard and seen...
when not hiding in his scorpion lair.
Laura Schlessinger continues her reign as the worlds biggest
hypocrite.
Check her out, she is a text book case of projection.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_projection
[][]
Prescription Drug Addiction: Avoiding The Dangers Of Withdrawal
http://media.novusdetox.com/news.php?include=137375
11/19/2008
[][]
Adolescent drug addiction
http://morezing.com/2008/11/20/adolescent-drug-addiction/
Thursday, 20 November 2008
[][] [][] [][]
Is the "Turban Effect" the New Bradley Effect?
By Tom Jacobs, Miller-McCune.com. Posted November 17, 2008.
http://www.alternet.org/rights/107384/is_the_%22turban_effect%22_the_new_bradley_effect/
By Tom Jacobs, Miller-McCune.com. Posted November 17, 2008.
Two recent studies conducted in two very different settings reveal a
disturbing anti-Muslim bias among students.
Should we put up with this?
Ic
FDA Says It's Trying To Squeeze Unapproved Drugs From Market
http://www.newsnet5.com/health/18044086/detail.html
November 23, 2008
WASHINGTON -- Taxpayers have shelled out at least $200 million since
2004 for medications that have never been reviewed by the government
for safety and effectiveness but are still covered under Medicaid, an
Associated Press analysis of federal data has found. Millions of
private patients are taking such drugs, as well.
The availability of unapproved prescription drugs to the public may
create a dangerous false sense of security. Dozens of deaths have been
linked to them.
The medications date back decades, before the Food and Drug
Administration tightened its review of drugs in the early 1960s. The
FDA says it is trying to squeeze them from the market, but conflicting
federal laws allow the Medicaid health program for low-income people
to pay for them.
The AP analysis found that Medicaid paid nearly $198 million from 2004
to 2007 for more than 100 unapproved drugs, mostly for common
conditions such as colds and pain. Data for 2008 were not available
but unapproved drugs still are being sold. The AP checked the
medications against FDA databases, using agency guidelines to
determine if they were unapproved. The FDA says there may be thousands
of such drugs on the market.
Medicaid officials acknowledge the problem, but say they need help
from Congress to fix it. The FDA and Medicaid are part of the Health
and Human Services Department, but the FDA has yet to compile a master
list of unapproved drugs, and Medicaid -- which may be the biggest
purchaser -- keeps paying.
"I think this is something we ought to look at very hard, and we ought
to fix it," said Medicaid chief Herb Kuhn. "It raises a whole set of
questions, not only in terms of safety, but in the efficiency of the
program -- to make sure we are getting the right set of services for
beneficiaries."
At a time when families, businesses and government are struggling with
health care costs and 46 million people are uninsured, payments for
questionable medications amount to an unplugged leak in the system.
Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, has asked the HHS inspector general to
investigate.
That unapproved prescription drugs can be sold in the United States
surprises even doctors and pharmacists. But the FDA estimates they
account for 2 percent of all prescriptions filled by U.S. pharmacies,
about 72 million scripts a year. Private insurance plans also cover
them.
The roots of the problem go back in time, tangled in layers of
legalese.
It wasn't until 1962 that Congress ordered the FDA to review all new
medications for effectiveness. Thousands of drugs already on the
market were also supposed to be evaluated. But some manufacturers
claimed their medications were "grandfathered" under earlier laws, and
even under the 1962 bill.
Then, in the early 1980s, a safety scandal erupted over one of those
medications. E-Ferol, a high potency vitamin E injection, was linked
to serious reactions in some 100 premature babies, 40 of whom died.
In response, the FDA started a program to weed out drugs it had never
reviewed scientifically. Yet some medications continued to escape
scrutiny.
Sometimes, the medications do not help patients. In other cases, the
FDA says, they have made people sicker, maybe even killed them. This
year, for example, the FDA banned injectable versions of a gout drug
called colchicine after receiving reports of 23 deaths. Investigators
found the unapproved drug had a very narrow margin of safety, and
patients easily could receive a toxic dose leading to complications
such as organ failure.
Critics say the FDA's case-by-case enforcement approach is not
working.
"The FDA does not appear to have a systematic mechanism to report
these drugs out," said Jon Glaudemans, senior vice president of
Avalere Health, a health care industry information company, "and there
doesn't seem to be a systematic process by which health insurance
programs can validate their status. And everyone is pointing the
finger at someone else as to why we can't get there."
In most cases, doctors, pharmacists and patients are not aware the
drugs are unapproved.
"Over the years, they have become fully entrenched in the system,"
said Patti Manolakis, a Charlotte, N.C., pharmacist who has studied
the issue. Only a few unapproved drugs are truly essential and should
remain on the market, she added.
Tackling the problem is made harder by confusing -- and sometimes
conflicting -- laws, regulations and responsibilities that pertain to
different government agencies.
Medicaid officials said their program, which serves the poor and
disabled, is allowed to pay for unapproved drugs until the FDA orders
a specific medication off the market. But that can take years.
Compare that with Medicare, the health care program for older people.
Medicare's prescription program is not supposed to cover unapproved
drugs. Medicare has purged hundreds of such medications from its
coverage lists, but continues to find others.
It might be easier to sort things out if the FDA compiled a master
list of unapproved drugs, but the agency hasn't. FDA officials say
that would be difficult because many manufacturers do not list
unapproved products with the agency. Yet, the AP found many that were
listed -- a possible starting point for a list.
Among the drugs the AP's research identified were Carbofed, for colds
and flu; Hylira, a dry skin ointment; Andehist, a decongestant, and
ICAR Prenatal, a vitamin tablet. Medicaid data show the program paid
$7.3 million for Carbofed products from 2004 to 2007; $146,000 for
Hylira; $4.8 million for Andehist products, and $900,000 for ICAR.
Grassley said the system is failing taxpayers and consumers.
"The problem I see is bureaucrats don't want to make a decision,"
Grassley said. "There is no reason why this should be such a house of
mirrors when so much public money is being spent." Grassley is
considering introducing legislation to ensure that consumers are told
when a medication is unapproved.
FDA officials say they tell Medicaid and Medicare when the agency
moves to ban an unapproved drug, so the programs can stop paying.
"The situation is complicated by the fact that Medicaid and Medicare
have a different regulatory regime than FDA does," said FDA compliance
lawyer Michael Levy. "There are products that we may consider to be
illegally marketed that could be legally reimbursed under their law."
The FDA began its latest crackdown on unapproved drugs two years ago
and has taken action against nine types of medications and dozens of
companies. Typically, the agency orders manufacturers to stop making
and shipping drugs, and it also has seized millions of dollars' worth
of medications. But federal law does not provide fines for selling
unapproved drugs, and criminal prosecutions are rare.
Some manufacturers of unapproved drugs say their products predate FDA
regulation and are "grandfathered in."
"These are drugs that don't require an FDA approval," said Bill
Peters, chief financial officer of Hi-Tech Pharmacal in Amityville,
N.Y. "These are products with active ingredients that have been on the
market for a long time." The company is moving away from older
products, Peters said, and its new market offerings are FDA-approved.
Levy said the FDA is skeptical that any drugs now being sold are
entitled to "grandfather" status. To qualify, they would have to be
identical to medications sold decades ago in formulation and other
important aspects.
The agency is targeting drugs linked to fraud, ones that do not work
and, above all, those with safety risks. While the crackdown has
helped, it does not appear to have solved the problem.
The gout drug banned by the FDA this February is not the only recent
case involving safety problems.
Last year, the FDA banned unapproved cough medicines containing
hydrocodone, a potent narcotic. Some had directions for medicating
children as young as age 2, although no hydrocodone cough products
have been shown to be safe and effective for children under 6.
In a 2006 case, the agency received 21 reports of children younger
than 2 who died after taking unapproved cold and allergy medications
containing carbinoxamine, an allergy drug that also acts as a powerful
sedative. Regulators banned all products that contained carbinoxamine
in combination with other cold medicines.
"We as Americans have a belief that all the prescription drugs that
are available to us have been reviewed and approved by the FDA," said
Manolakis, the pharmacist. "I think the presence of these drugs shows
we have a false sense of security."
[][]
Prescription Drug Addictions
http://www.recoveryconnection.org/blog/2008/10/prescription-drug-addictions/
Drug Abuse Treatment Centers are seeing an increase in admissions of
people that never had a drug problem before they were prescribed pain
medication.
On Nov 23, 12:49 pm, Ic <lol7...@msn.com> wrote:
> Prescription Drug Addiction And Death Rampant In Utah
> http://www.free-articles-zone.com/article/196730/Prescription%20Drug%...
> They’re killing people, hopes, and dreams. Utah has set up a web site,www.useonlyasdirected.org, to help promote the awareness campaign to
> reduce prescription drug addiction, abuse and untimely deaths.
>
> If you or someone you know is suffering from prescription drug
> addiction or abuse, call a medical drug detox counselor right away and
> get some solid, professional advice.
> [][]
>
> Prescription Drug Addiction Increasing In US Militaryhttp://www.free-articles-zone.com/article/194784/Prescription%20Drug%...
> http://tiny.cc/kingPAGE Your money at work.http://tiny.cc/kingPAGE194
> Check her out, she is a text book case of projection.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_projection
>
> [][]
> Prescription Drug Addiction: Avoiding The Dangers Of Withdrawalhttp://media.novusdetox.com/news.php?include=137375
> 11/19/2008
> [][]
> Adolescent drug addictionhttp://morezing.com/2008/11/20/adolescent-drug-addiction/
> Thursday, 20 November 2008
> [][] [][] [][]
> Is the "Turban Effect" the New Bradley Effect?
> By Tom Jacobs, Miller-McCune.com. Posted November 17, 2008.http://www.alternet.org/rights/107384/is_the_%22turban_effect%22_the_...