Addictions Treatment Blog

(From JoinTogether Online) New restrictions will be placed on prescription of two dozen powerful Schedule II narcotic drugs including OxyContin, methadone and morphine, the New York Times reported Feb. 10.

The new rules could lead to many doctors losing their prescribing rights of extended-release opioids that are addictive and have high potential for overdose and death if misused. These new regulations could go a long way in preventing OxyContin addiction by restricting access to the drug.

"What we're talking about is putting in place a program to try to ensure that physicians prescribing these products are properly trained in their safe use, and that only those physicians are prescribing those products," said John K. Jenkins, director of the drug center at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). "This is going to be a massive program."

Jenkins said current FDA regulations have failed to prevent inappropriate prescriptions, overaggressive marketing, and drug misuse that have led to deaths and overdoses. On the other hand, Jenkins noted that the drugs are highly effective in reducing pain. Federal officials will meet with drug makers, consumer advocates and others in March to discuss policy changes.

The announcement may signal a more assertive role in regulating physician prescribing by the FDA, which traditionally has issued warnings but left control over the practice of medicine to state medical boards. However, the rampant prescription drug addiction problem in the United States has left little options other than taking whatever measures necessary to get a handle on this situation.

A frightening occurrence in the addiction treatment field over the last several years has been trying to treat addiction with more drugs. The drug substitution method has failed repeatedly in any broad application to free people from substance abuse. In many cases, it actually makes them worse.

A recent example includes a mother looking for a drug rehab in the southeast for her son. He had gone to a long term rehab that didn't use substitute drugs and had done well for several years. While living in a sober house he was required to attend meetings at a local treatment center where he was pressured into taking three prescription drugs. Within two months he had gone into a full-blown drug reversion and was now exhibiting additional destructive behaviors due to the side effects of the psychiatric drugs he was taking. The mother asked for help in finding a program that didn't push drugs on their clients and we happily assisted her.

Substitute drugs like opioid maintenance programs, antidepressants, anti-psychotics, anti-anxiety meds and anti-drinking pills often leave the person with more problems than they originally had. In addition, many of these new substances also can create a dependence. This is why we strongly urge people to seek programs that don't use substitute drugs.

Contact us today for locating an effective long-term addiction treatment program. Call us at 1-800-217-0986.