View Full Version : Trump Administration To Declare Opioid Crisis A Public Health Emergency?????
Crepitus
10-26-2017, 08:29 AM
Trump Administration To Declare Opioid Crisis A Public Health Emergency (http://www.npr.org/2017/10/26/560083795/president-trump-may-declare-opioid-epidemic-national-emergency)
Didn't he say he was gonna do that like 6 months ago?
Is he gonna actually do it this time?
The move stops short of declaring the crisis a national emergency, which Trump first said he'd declare in August. He repeated that pledge this week. The White House said it determined that declaring a public health emergency was more appropriate than a national emergency.
I guess not.
waltky
10-30-2017, 07:52 AM
Insurance backlash against opioids...
http://www.politicalwrinkles.com/images/icons/icon5.gif Midwest Health Care Provider Cuts Opioid Prescriptions
October 27, 2017 — A major health care system serving the upper Midwest said this week that the number of opioid pills it prescribes has fallen by almost a quarter as it works to respond to America’s opioid epidemic.
South Dakota-headquartered Sanford Health started analyzing its prescribing last year to direct its response to rising opioid and heroin overdose deaths, said Doug Griffin, who spearheaded the system’s data collection as vice president and medical officer for Sanford in Fargo, North Dakota. Griffin said the health system learned that the numbers are “staggering”: The system reported prescribing 4.3 million opioid pills in the first quarter of 2016, a figure that doesn’t include cancer patients’ prescriptions. Sanford took steps as a result, including mandating opioid education for providers and using its electronic health record system to alert doctors about safe prescribing habits, Griffin said.
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President Donald Trump speaks during an event declaring the opioid crisis in the U.S. a national public health emergency, in the East Room of the White House
Sanford has since seen a significant reduction in both the number of pills prescribed and prescriptions written. Sanford providers wrote 18 percent fewer prescriptions for opioids in the third quarter of 2017 compared to the first quarter of 2016, amounting to 24 percent, or about 1.25 million, fewer pills prescribed, according to the health system. The Sioux Falls, South Dakota, region saw a 19 percent reduction in pills prescribed, while the Fargo area experienced a 33 percent drop and the Bemidji, Minnesota, region saw a 37 percent decrease, according to Sanford.
‘Knowledge has changed’
“The stance that we have taken is clearly opioid overdoses, both illicit and prescription overdoses, are a problem in this country, including in our footprint,” Griffin said. “Like many things in medicine, our knowledge has changed and our focus has shifted on this.” Allison Suttle, chief medical officer at Sanford, said the system’s end goal is to ensure patients are safe and well-treated and that physicians are educated in how to treat patients’ pain while being “good stewards of the use of opioids.” “Large health systems can serve as examples,” she said. South Dakota Department of Health Secretary Kim Malsam-Rysdon said that South Dakota has a low opioid overdose death rate compared to other states, but noted that the state had 38 opioid overdose deaths last year. She said large health systems are on the front lines
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Allison Suttle, chief medical officer at Sanford Health, talks about the system's opioid prescriptions in Sioux Falls, S.D., Oct. 25, 2017. Sanford providers wrote 18 percent fewer prescriptions for opioids in the third quarter of 2017 compared to the first quarter of 2016.
“I think they’re extremely committed to this, and I’m really confident that we’re going to see the changes that we need to see to stay ahead of this epidemic that we’re seeing in other states,” she said. Avera Health, a Sioux Falls-based health system, sponsored a conference this month with the U.S. Attorney’s Office of South Dakota on the opioid epidemic. Deb Fischer-Clemens, Avera vice president of public policy, said the organization’s responsible prescribing program includes patient contracts, educating providers and patients on opioids and working with its electronic health record to create easy access to the state Prescription Drug Monitoring Program.
Fewer prescriptions, fewer pills
Jay Bhatt, senior vice president and chief medical office for the American Hospital Association, said in a statement that the nation’s hospitals and health systems are working to reduce the number of prescriptions written for opioids and the number of days that many patients take them. Utah-based Intermountain Healthcare pledged in August to cut by 40 percent the average amount of opioids given per acute pain prescription by the end of next year.
https://www.voanews.com/a/health-care-provider-cuts-opioid-prescriptions/4089598.html
waltky
11-08-2017, 11:35 AM
Common Painkillers as Effective as Opioids in Hospital Emergency Room...
http://www.politicalwrinkles.com/images/smilies/thumbsup.gif
Study: Common Painkillers as Effective as Opioids in Hospital Emergency Room
November 07, 2017 - Researchers studying a hospital emergency room report a cocktail of simple drug store pain relievers work just as well or sometimes better than prescribed opioids.
The study appears in the latest issue of The Journal of the America Medical Association and could be an effective ground zero in the fight against the current opioid epidemic. “Preventing new patients from becoming addicted to opioids may have a greater effect on the opioid epidemic than providing sustained treatment to patients already addicted,” emergency medical specialist Demetrios Kyriacou wrote in the Journal.
Studies have shown that many opioid addictions start in the emergency room, where a patient with a broken bone or another injury is sent home with a prescription for a powerful painkiller.
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This Nov. 2, 2017, photo shows tablets of ibuprofen in New York. A study released on Nov. 7, 2017, found that over-the-counter pills worked as well as opioids at reducing severe pain for emergency room patients with broken bones and sprains.
The study shows that patients given a cocktail of the same kind of painkillers found in such well-known, over-the-counter brands as Tylenol and Advil get the same kind of short-term pain relief as they get from the stronger medications.
The study was carried out at the Montefiore Medical Center emergency room in New York City. Experts say as many as 2 million Americans are addicted to opioids and President Donald Trump has declared it a national health emergency.
https://www.voanews.com/a/study-shows-common-painkillers-as-effective-as-opioids-in-er/4105953.html
See also:
Wisconsin Lawsuit Blames Drug Makers for Opioid Crisis
November 07, 2017 — Nearly two dozen Wisconsin counties are suing makers of prescription painkillers, alleging in a federal lawsuit Tuesday that the companies’ “nefarious and deceptive” marketing campaigns precipitated the nation’s opioid overdose epidemic.
The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages and says the county health and law enforcement services “have been strained to the breaking point” because of the overdose crisis that has claimed thousands of lives. More than two dozen states, cities and counties have filed similar lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies, accusing them of making false claims about the dangers of their drugs to make a profit. “Defendants’ goal was simple: to dramatically increase sales by convincing doctors that it was safe and efficacious to prescribe opioids to treat not only the kind of severe and short-term pain associated with surgery or cancer, but also for a seemingly unlimited array of less severe, longer-term pain, such as back pain and arthritis to name but two examples,” the lawsuit filed in the Eastern District of Wisconsin says.
https://gdb.voanews.com/1F2F1F86-E6E8-4EC6-AD82-CDFBECF89C9C_w1023_r1_s.jpg
An arrangement of pills of the opioid oxycodone-acetaminophen in New York.
Drug companies knew their “products were addictive, subject to abuse, and not safe or efficacious for long-term use,” that lawsuit says. It names Purdue Pharma, Johnson & Johnson, Endo Health Solutions, Inc. and subsidiaries of the companies. Three doctors in California and Utah are also listed. “We vigorously deny these allegations and look forward to the opportunity to present our defense,” Purdue Pharma said in a statement that also said the company is “deeply troubled by the opioid crisis and we are dedicated to being part of the solution.”
Endo Health Solutions said in a statement its “top priorities include patient safety and ensuring that patients with chronic pain have access to safe and effective therapeutic options” while preventing opioid abuse. It said it couldn’t comment further on pending litigation. Johnson & Johnson did not immediately respond to an email asking for comment.
More than 52,000 Americans died in 2015 from drug overdoses, most of them involving prescription opioids or related illicit drugs such as fentanyl and heroin, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Wisconsin, 1,824 people died from opioid overdoses from 2013 to 2015, according to the lawsuit. One of the local governments taking legal action, Washington County, with a population of about 131,900, had 542 hospitalizations involving opioids last year, according to the lawsuit, and 70 opioid overdose deaths from 2013 to 2016.
https://www.voanews.com/a/wisconsin-lawsuit-blames-drug-makers-for-opioid-crisis/4105283.html
Related:
Indiana Prosecutors Vehemently Oppose Medical Marijuana
November 07, 2017 — Indiana's county prosecutors remain vehemently opposed to any form of marijuana legalization and insist the plant "is not medicine" amid a push by a conservative state lawmaker to have it recognized as such.
The Association of Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys argues, in a letter to Republican Governor Eric Holcomb's administration, that.any type of marijuana legalization would come with grave consequences The letter, dated last week, was publicly released Monday.
"Reports abound of efforts to legalize marijuana in the state of Indiana," wrote David N. Powell, the association's executive secretary. "We respectfully ask the [administration] to formally oppose the legalization of marijuana in any form, for any purpose."
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Vials filled with samples of marijuana are lined up March 24, 2017, at the Blum medical marijuana dispensary, in Reno, Nev.
It came as state Representative Jim Lucas — a media-savvy politician better known for his outspoken opposition to gun restrictions — said he would "100 percent full-throttle" pursue medical marijuana legislation. The libertarian-leaning lawmaker from Seymour faces long odds during the session beginning in January, but the fact that a Republican is so vocally pushing the measure marks a significant change. Reached Tuesday for comment on the prosecutors' letter, Lucas said: "The gloves are off." Holcomb's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Legalization common
Although federal law still considers marijuana illegal, more than half of U.S. states, including some conservative ones, have legalized medical marijuana for the treatment of certain conditions. "We got 29 states that are ahead of us, that have shown the benefits," Lucas said. "Can it be abused? Sure, anything can be abused. But since we know this can save lives, why do we want to continue to risk the quality of life, or the well-being of innocent people, just because some might go out there and abuse it?" He suggested medical marijuana could provide an alternative to addictive painkillers. The prosecutors association disagrees. It also says those who argue that marijuana can be used as medicine are relying on "half-truths and anecdotal evidence." But that's at odds with scientific studies that have found marijuana can treat chronic pain and ease nausea from chemotherapy, among other medical issues.
A federal advisory panel said in a January report that there were likely medical benefits to marijuana, but also potential risks that needed to be researched more. Powell said in his letter that a Food and Drug Administration review was the only "legally recognized procedure for bringing safe and effective medications to the American public." "To date, the FDA has not found marijuana to be either safe or effective medicine for any condition," he added. Last year, Indiana took baby steps toward adopting medical marijuana after Holcomb signed a law allowing those with a form of epilepsy to use cannabidiol, often referred to as CBD, which is derived from pot plants but lacks psychoactive properties. The prosecutors association opposed the measure.
https://www.voanews.com/a/indiana-prosecutors-vehemently-oppose-medical-marijuana/4105255.html
waltky
11-10-2017, 07:55 PM
US to Ban Illicit Versions of Fentanyl...
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US to Ban Illicit Versions of Synthetic Opioid
November 10, 2017 - The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration plans to ban all illicit versions of fentanyl, the highly addictive opioid painkiller responsible for tens of thousands of deadly drug overdoses in the United States in recent years.
The DEA, an arm of the Justice Department, will classify all "fentanyl-related substances" as a Schedule I drug, effectively making their sale illegal, the Department said on Thursday. The scheduling is the latest step by the Trump administration to combat an epidemic that has killed more than a half-million Americans since 2000. U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the move, calling it “an important step toward halting the rising death toll caused by illicit fentanyls in the United States.” "By scheduling all fentanyls, we empower our law enforcement officers and prosecutors to take swift and necessary action against those spreading these deadly poisons,” Sessions said in a statement. DEA spokesperson Barbara Carreno said no date has been set for publishing the planned classification in the federal register. The classification will take effect no earlier than 30 days after the DEA publishes its notice of intent and will last up to two years with the option of a one-year extension.
'Schedules' of drugs
The DEA divides drugs, substances, and chemicals used to make drugs into five categories or “schedules,” depending on their medical purpose and potential for abuse and dependency. Schedule I drugs, the agency's highest classification, have no medial use and have a high potential for abuse. Heroin and marijuana are among substances currently categorized as Schedule I drugs. Schedule II drugs have an accepted medical use but have a high potential for abuse. Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid pain reliever 100 times more powerful than morphine, is currently listed as a Schedule II drug.
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A bag of 4-fluoro isobutyryl fentanyl which was seized in a drug raid is displayed at the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Testing and Research Laboratory in Sterling, Virginia
The U.S. opioid epidemic is being fueled in large part by the growing prevalence of illicit fentanyl and fentanyl analogues (variations of fentanyl) imported from China, Mexico and other countries. Last year, more than 64,000 Americans died of drug overdoses, including more than 20,000 who overdosed on fentanyl-related substances, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
To evade U.S. controls, foreign manufacturers of fentanyl create “structural variants” of fentanyl that are not currently listed under the Controlled Substances Act, the Justice Department said. Carreno said the scheduling of fentanyl analogues “gives us the opportunity to get ahead of the rogue chemists out there to make new drugs by tweaking molecules.” Once the classification takes effect, “anyone who possesses, imports, distributes, or manufactures any illicit fentanyl analogue will be subject to criminal prosecution in the same manner as for fentanyl and other controlled substances,” the Department of Justice said in a statement.
https://www.voanews.com/a/us-to-ban-illicit-versions-of-synthetic-opioid/4109588.html
waltky
11-20-2017, 03:42 AM
Granny says dat's a lotta money...
http://www.politicalwrinkles.com/images/smilies/eek.gif
Opioid Crisis Cost US Economy $504 Billion in 2015
November 19, 2017 | WASHINGTON — Opioid drug abuse, which has ravaged parts of the United States in recent years, cost the economy as much as $504 billion in 2015, White House economists said in a report made public on Sunday.
The White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) said the toll from the opioid crisis represented 2.8 percent of gross domestic product that year. President Donald Trump last month declared the opioid crisis a public health emergency. While Republican lawmakers said that was an important step in fighting opioid abuse, some critics, including Democrats, said the move was meaningless without additional funding.
https://gdb.voanews.com/1F2F1F86-E6E8-4EC6-AD82-CDFBECF89C9C_w1023_r1_s.jpg
An arrangement of pills of the opioid oxycodone-acetaminophen, in New York.
The report could be used by the Trump White House to urge Republicans in Congress - who historically have opposed increasing government spending - to provide more funding for fighting the opioid crisis by arguing that the economic losses far outweigh the cost of additional government funding. Using a combination of statistical models, the CEA said the lost economic output stemming from 33,000 opioid-related deaths in 2015 could be between $221 billion and $431 billion, depending on the methodology used.
In addition, the report looked at the cost of non-fatal opioid usage, estimating a total of $72 billion for 2.4 million people with opioid addictions in 2015. Those costs included medical treatment, criminal justice system expenses and the decreased economic productivity of addicts.
The CEA said its estimate was larger than those of some prior studies because it took a broad look at the value of lives lost to overdoses. The CEA also said its methodology incorporated an adjustment to reflect the fact that opioids were underreported on death certificates. "The crisis has worsened, especially in terms of overdose deaths which have doubled in the past ten years," the CEA said. "While previous studies have focused exclusively on prescription opioids, we consider illicit opioids including heroin as well." Opioids, primarily prescription painkillers, heroin and fentanyl, are fueling the drug overdoses. More than 100 Americans die daily from related overdoses, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
https://www.voanews.com/a/us-opioid-crisis-white-house-report/4126121.html
Common
11-20-2017, 03:55 AM
Trump Administration To Declare Opioid Crisis A Public Health Emergency (http://www.npr.org/2017/10/26/560083795/president-trump-may-declare-opioid-epidemic-national-emergency)
Didn't he say he was gonna do that like 6 months ago?
Is he gonna actually do it this time?
I guess not.
lol man crep hes been potus less than a year, how about that OBAMA GUY what did he do about the opoid epidemic
donttread
11-20-2017, 07:29 AM
Common Painkillers as Effective as Opioids in Hospital Emergency Room...
http://www.politicalwrinkles.com/images/smilies/thumbsup.gif
Study: Common Painkillers as Effective as Opioids in Hospital Emergency Room
November 07, 2017 - Researchers studying a hospital emergency room report a cocktail of simple drug store pain relievers work just as well or sometimes better than prescribed opioids.
See also:
Wisconsin Lawsuit Blames Drug Makers for Opioid Crisis
November 07, 2017 — Nearly two dozen Wisconsin counties are suing makers of prescription painkillers, alleging in a federal lawsuit Tuesday that the companies’ “nefarious and deceptive” marketing campaigns precipitated the nation’s opioid overdose epidemic.
Related:
Indiana Prosecutors Vehemently Oppose Medical Marijuana
November 07, 2017 — Indiana's county prosecutors remain vehemently opposed to any form of marijuana legalization and insist the plant "is not medicine" amid a push by a conservative state lawmaker to have it recognized as such.
As for the study that showed that OTC pain killers worked as well as Opiods. I think the survey designers should have gut or joint surgery and wake up to Tylenol. LOL
In fact part of the problem is that big pharma is making so much money they have no incentive to find non addictive, non tolerance building pain killers. They actually came up with tramadol, still considered an opiate derivitive, but causing musch less of a "buzz" or " tired feeling" and killing pain better than OTC. But then the FDA scheduled it almost like real opiates. Why? No idea. But they are the FDA so the reason probably was corrupt.
Standing Wolf
11-20-2017, 08:34 AM
I am always suspicious when politicians talk about needing money to "fight" something...whether it's "the opioid crisis", gun violence, terrorism or something else. Too often a politician's idea of spending taxpayer dollars to "fight" something consists of giving tens (or hundreds) of millions of dollars to advisors, consultants, committees and study groups to collect statistics that have already been collected, and to debate and consider potential courses of action that have already been suggested. It's also remarkable how frequently large chunks of that money ends up in the hands of those politicians' past or future employers, or go to those with personal ties to the politicians or their family members.
DGUtley
11-20-2017, 08:41 AM
I am always suspicious when politicians talk about needing money to "fight" something...whether it's "the opioid crisis", gun violence, terrorism or something else. Too often a politician's idea of spending taxpayer dollars to "fight" something consists of giving tens (or hundreds) of millions of dollars to advisors, consultants, committees and study groups to collect statistics that have already been collected, and to debate and consider potential courses of action that have already been suggested. It's also remarkable how frequently large chunks of that money ends up in the hands of those politicians' past or future employers, or go to those with personal ties to the politicians or their family members.
What SW said ^^
Crepitus
11-20-2017, 10:36 AM
lol man crep hes been potus less than a year, how about that OBAMA GUY what did he do about the opoid epidemic
Whataboutobama. Again. Got anything else?
Standing Wolf
11-20-2017, 11:00 AM
It also frequently happens that money which is ostensibly going to "fight" something is actually being spent in ways that defy all fairness or logic. Using "the opioid crisis" as an example, I'm quite certain that the large pharmaceutical companies that produce those drugs - including those that have been guilty of misrepresenting the addictive qualities of their product - are at this exact moment lobbying their favorite politicians not only to play a (well paid) role in the fight by forming study groups and advisory committees, but to be financially compensated in some fashion for the money they are currently not getting for opioid sales. Yes, I'm aware that that sounds insane...but we are talking about politicians.
barb012
11-20-2017, 12:22 PM
The Heroin crisis did not come from the drug manufacturers. The insurance companies are using this crisis so they do not have to pay for the enormous cost of these prescribed drugs. The baby boomers are going to suffer big time because the medical field is now afraid to prescribe any narcotics. Both the drug manufacturers and the physicians who prescribe them do share some responsibility for this crisis.
Some, however the big elephant in the room that is the main contributor for all of these Heroin deaths is our government. The Afghanistan war where 90% of where Heroin comes from where its borders are protected by the U.S. military is how all of this heroin is getting into this country. We will not hear any media coverage about this fact so their attention to assign blame is the drug companies which works great for the insurance companies, politicians, our military, etc.
Our government has a long history of being involved in the black market drug trade. It is our government ultimately responsible for all of these Heroin deaths. They can reduce the supply of Heroin brought into this country since most of it got here by government employees. So until people understand who is really responsible for all of their children, siblings, relatives, and friends dying from Heroin, this crisis will continue.
waltky
05-17-2018, 01:11 PM
First Non-Opioid Drug to Treat Withdrawal Symptoms Approved...
:cool2:
FDA Approves First Non-Opioid Drug to Treat Withdrawal Symptoms
May 16, 2018 - Patients suffering from opioid addiction may soon be given the first non-opioid drug to help them handle withdrawal symptoms.
The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved use of the drug Lucemyra, saying it gives doctors a new option for treating the side effects of withdrawal. "We know that the physical symptoms of opioid withdrawal can be one of the biggest barriers for patients seeking help and ultimately overcoming addiction," FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said. "The fear of experiencing withdrawal symptoms often prevents those suffering from opioid addiction from seeking help."
https://gdb.voanews.com/1F2F1F86-E6E8-4EC6-AD82-CDFBECF89C9C_w1023_r1_s.jpg
This Aug. 15, 2017, photo shows an arrangement of pills of the opioid oxycodone-acetaminophen in New York.
Those symptoms include anxiety, muscle aches, sweating, vomiting and a craving for drugs. Opioids are synthetic painkillers generally prescribed by doctors or used in hospital emergency rooms. But they can become highly addictive, even after the original injury has healed. Doctors usually treat addiction by substituting one opioid for another, then gradually reducing use or transitioning to other drugs.
Part of long-term plan
Lucemyra is an oral treatment and can be used for only 14 days. The FDA said Lucemyra is not a treatment for opioid addiction but can be used as part of a long-term plan to fight the problem. Last year, President Donald Trump declared the opioid epidemic a national public health emergency. Despite public pronouncements on the need to cut back on opioid prescriptions and to punish drug dealers more harshly, administration critics said they have yet to see any concrete plans from the White House to battle the crisis.
https://www.voanews.com/a/fda-approves-first-non-opioid-drug-to-treat-withdrawal-symptoms/4397184.html
If the pharmaceutical companies could develop a non narcotic drug to suppress or eliminate pain it would make them rich beyond belief. They have tried and someday they will. I worked for Syntex before it was bought out by Roche. Syntex had Naproxen and then the over the counter version of it called Aleve. We had two plants in Boulder and one in Missouri and others in Mexico and Ireland dedicated to making the intermediates for this drug. It was a cash cow. They had a new drug in the pipeline called Ketorolac Tromethamine (Toradol.) It was a very powerful NSAID that really could relieve pain that could have replaced opioids in many cases. A drug that would allow the user to live a normal life, able to work or drive a car because you wouldn't be doped up. It did fairly well in the first round of trials. The problem for Syntex is that the top people went all in without waiting for more trial testing. On top of that they didn't have anything else in the research pipeline. It turned out to be a big mistake which is why they ended up being bought out by Roche. The drug works and is used but it has so many bad side effects that it can't be used by a very large group of people. The pharmaceutical companies would make much more money if they do develop a drug that does what Ketorolac was supposed to than they ever did with opioids.
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