With regards to narcotics being sold at pharmacies, how about we just stop that and move them to special government dispensaries, similar to the "state stores" some states have to sell alcohol? It might be slightly more inconvenient but such stores could be designed for maximum security with bulletproof glass, detailed record keeping and armed federal guards. It seems we are playing a game of whack-a-mole with unprotected pharmacists dispensing drugs that a lot of people have no qualms about killing to get. Remove the narcotics from pharmacies and addicts will have no reason to go there. If they attempt to rob a government store with its "enhanced" security, the odds are pretty good it will be their last attempt.

I believe that would prove unworkable with the wide range of drugs impacted. I recently had to show my drivers license to purchase OTC cold remedy (NyQuil). That was a first. I also purchase monthly supply of Vyvanse (Ritalin). One can't get a 90 day supply of many drugs, which are on the "controlled substance" list. That's fine with me as I understand why there are extra restrictions/precautions. I was on a prescription painkiller for a few weeks after sinus surgery about 8 years ago. I had become addicted to them in that short period of time. The 7-8 days after I finished was "Hell on Earth". I had never felt so terrible. I now consciously avoid all prescription painkillers unless they are just for a couple of days. I'm not sure what the answer is. Greater awareness is a must. My doctor had not warned me of the potential for addiction. I would like to hear more from law enforcement experts on what has been successful in combatting this problem in other jurisdictions.

I avoid painkillers at all costs. I never liked the way they made me feel and refuse to take more than Tylenol or Motrin. If it helps fine, if not I live with the pain.
For the safety of our Pharmacy owners and workers, I believe there should be some sort of state run store with maximum security that handles the array of pills that have caused this senseless loss of life that is plaquing our society

State run stores would increase taxes and possibly put pharmacists of business. Liquor stores get robbed and we're not removing alcohol from supermarkets and liquor stores. Treat addiction as the problem it is. We don't need task forces telling us we have a drug problem. We need early education for kids, interventions for families, awareness of what an addict looks like. Not all addicts look like they are about to rob a pharmacy and even this latest one could have passed for your average every day person, not scary on the street. Perceptions need to change and as Kevin O'Reilly pointed out, doctors need to make us aware when writing a prescription just how addictive it could be. Mine always did and I was fearful of addiction and took an over the counter med. Still, not everyone can make that choice and what of those already addicted?

How about Doctors responsibility in this, why exclude them since they are in the pocket of the pharmaceutical companies. Why not crack down on how they prescribe medication that often isn't in your best interest but only to fill their pockets. This will be even more the case now that doctors are making less money due to Medicare reductions. Elderly patients were a Dr's best friend. Why, they always have issues, and often have Medicare or Medicaid to pay for drugs. Drugs that Pharmaceutical companies pressure them to push on you. Don't believe me, take a look in grannies medicine cabinet.

There are instances where people need operations to relieve a joint pain, nerve damage pain, pain in the spine, or pain that causes migrains. However, due to the fact they do not have proper insurance coverage for that operation, the doctor prescribes pain medication "for the interim" period. This time frame expands to a much longer time frame- causing the patient to become hooked.
The doctor faces a dilemma to treat the symptom or reject the patient, causing the patient to "doctor shop". If the doctor overtreats the patient he is wrong. If he or she leaves without being treated for "pain" society will eventually feel the pain.

Kristen Ferrari--KNOWS WHAT SHES TALKING ABOUT

Pain killers are a fact of life for cancer patients and those with painful diseases.

Banks were easy pickings until they installed full ceiling to floor barriers that prevent people from getting near tellers and the money.

This must now happen to pharmacies. The clerks, pharmacists and drugs must work behind a barrier that prevents would be robbers from gaining access.

Bank robberies have been on the rise. Floor to ceiling barriers can be costly and again, who is paying for the increased security measures if required? Some of these local mom and pop places enjoy the interaction with their local customer base. Shouldn't it be their choice how they choose to run their business and what security measures to take? Is everything going to be a government regulation? And is that going to end addiction and addiction related crimes?

In NYC, most banks have "bandit barriers"- how many around here do?
ditto for NYC yellow cabs vs local ones.
any place where there is cash on hand is a target in today s awful economy.
task forces aren't the answer-neither are state run stores.

each business-has to decide for itself what kind of measures to take.

Crime is on the rise everywhere, so what's the answer to that? Should we all carry guns? No. The abuse of prescription drugs is a nationwide epidemic, how to solve that, I don't have the answer - but I would suggest having a nation wide data base for each prescription recipient - so that "doctor hopping" and what not would/could be stopped. Just as the pharmacy data base is supposed to check for drug interactions, they could check for multiple 'scrips for the same person.

I am not for any more bullet proof glass, or gov't buildings, etc. It's a shame that our solutions are short term and not long term.

How do Dr's contribute ??? Who do you think prescribes the pain killers that even good intentioned people get addicted to. Not everyone addicted to pain killers is a thief or criminal. They get hooked because Dr's prescribe them. How about more effort to assist patients with pain. There are alternatives but your Dr. doesn't get a kickback on these.
If you think this is a major problem then you are clueless to the extent of medicaid fraud out there. Not only are the criminals making out but so is the pharmacist and the Dr's.
Read
http://news.heartland.org/newspaper-article/2005/09/01/fraud-and-waste-infect-new-york-medicaid
http://www.hhs.gov/asl/testify/2009/05/t20090506d.html

They estimate 60 BILLION lost to fraud and you think they are going to be able to stop the common thug. They can't even take care of the fraud claims.

helen-
i respectfully disagree. why should i be in yet another database when im responsible with my prescriptions.?

what they should be doing is watching the doctors and "red-flagging" the ones who write multiple prescriptions for the same individual again and again.

a bandit barrier is a lot less intrusive than a national database.

I am living proof of being prescribed pain meds for legitimate spinal disease, I tried every possible treatment to alleviate my pain, and when nothing worked, my pain management doctor prescribed Vicodin without warning me of the addictive nature of the drug. He told me and I quote "I can't stand to see anyone in pain, take the Vicodin" I am now addicted to Vicodin, and am currently paying $600.00 per prescription for Suboxone. I am a 62 year old Grandmother of six, and am so humiliated to have to be in this situation. I totally agree with Simba, doctors don't get kickbacks on alternative treatment. Its very sad and something should be done. Maybe a class action against the big Pharmaceutical Companies and the Doctors who carelessly prescribe them.

Kristen,
First of all I am not saying every doctor is at fault but if you have a chance to speak to federal authorities, you will find that for every fraud in Medicare a doctor is part of the scam as is a pharmacist. That is a fact. A 60 billion dollar scam. I know not every dr or pharmacist is a crook but a large portion is contributing to a large scam. They are making these drugs available to more addicts because of this scam. In my opinion this is where you start, not by over regulating the everyday person. We have enough hassles in our lives, it's time to go after the bigger fish.

They are not interested in Cash. Not tat much there anyway with insurance payments and use of credit/debit cards. It's TE drugs that they are after.

Kristen, I've been following your comments for days about our problem-- drug overdose and our society. I appreciate your well intended devotion to our community.Most of your revelations are on the mark. You certainly come up with very good arguments to stress your opinion. If you ever run for office or be an assistant to a local political organization, I'll be trusting you all the way.
Now about "trust". I firmly beleive in today's game plan, no matter what problem you may discuss, you have to know the people you can trust to solve the problem.
This area of concern is at the heart of our problem. The ball is dropping all over the place; who will be the responsible party to see it through, and not drop the ball.
We need to rely on certain people in key positions to make this whole thing work.
Intrusting doctors, pharmacists, police officers, politicians, and judges to make the right decicisions is key. Second guessing key people will only put a severe drag on the system, not allowing it to function- as we see it today. Thanks Kristen.

This is a very well thought-out thread. Thanks to all my regular contributors for your opinions. They were insightful. I think the range of answers here illustrates the complexity of the issue.

And Jon L. prevention can be addressed as a community. The current Rx problem has to be managed and the coming problems have to be averted. It is time to educate motivated parents along with their children - armed with knowledge they can be the impetus for change and that is happening. see www.RealityTour.org for community-based volunteer-driven prevention Service clubs can adopt this and be operational in just 90 days.

So then let me ask, who is the biggest contributor to this crime, who do you feel the authorities need to focus on, Who. If you think you can rely on education, then you haven't paid any attention to what a failure that approach has been on the illegal drug addiction side. So we have lot's of opinions, but who is the target we need to stop. Because you need to start somewhere. And if you start at the bottom, you'll only be chasing your tail.

So Joe L not many Doctor's huh

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/federal-agents-raided-health-care-facilities-states-morning/story?id=12940819#.TwmbbzjmR2M

First off it is Jon L. not Joe L.

Second, 100 different medical practitioners does not constitute many, let's for arguments sake say that they were all physicians and not a mix of other allier health professionals. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics data in 2003 there were 301,270 physicians in the United States so the 100 that just got clipped in that article you referenced from February constitutes 0.033% of licensed physicians. I would not represent that as 'a lot of' or 'many', I would say that this is a small percentage or a select few doing most of the damage to the Medicare/Medicaid System.

The entire practice of medicine is corrupt.There should be NO PROFITS ALLOWED in the care of our FELLOW HUMAN BEINGS! These drug stores are ripping people off selling them medicine to keep them healthy and then getting ripped off and complaining about it. they're ripping us all off every day and complaining when they're robbed. We need the entire industry nationalizedfrom the hospitals, to the doctors to CVS to the corner drug stores. People should NOT be getting rich from other's misery and sickness. If the system was nationalized, we would see the corruption stop. Socialized medicine is long overdue in the United States. The solution is simple.

Jon, learn to read better, I have consistently said I do not think the entire medical community is a contributor to Medicare fraud. Nor I do I believe it is a majority. But prescription drugs are a product of the medical community and IF we stand a chance to curb this illegal behaviour, the medical community needs to be in forefront of the solution. And your guess is completely wrong. The last thing we need is more Govt regulation, oh you didn't read my comment on that. If the Medical community does not take a firm stand on the issue, then they can only fault themselves if the Gov't steps in. As far as my command of the english language, you win.

You have said, "a large portion" and "not many huh"

I read and write well, thank you very much. It is difficult to make an educated point when I'm trying to read through your grammar and lesser command of the English language.

Jon if I'm the bad guy here so be it, but can we hear your solution. I am just trying to sound off my opinion. I apologize if I am not as educated as you are. But if I am the problem let me know, anytime, no problem.

Ummm how can we say doctors aren't the problem? I know alot of young people getting prescriptions for heavy duty pain killers who are only in pain because they are addicted. I know 2 people personally who died before hitting 30 due to prescription drugs. Someone is writing the prescriptions to get these people hooked. Look at the death of Michael Jackson. A doctor giving a patient a drug used to sedate patients for surgery just for him to sleep. I'm prescribed an anti-anxiety medication and my doctor insists on doing blood work (and i beg him not to) every 6 months to make sure I am not in danger of hurting my liver, kidneys and so on... others i know are getting prescriptions for multiple bars of xanax a day..they take some and sell the rest..if the doctors where more concerned about the welfare of their patients and the public they would behave more like my physician and run tests to follow up. "controlled substances" HA!

NO! I should have explained. I have a needle phobia so every 6 months I try to weasel out of it. He is doing the right thing whether I like it or not is all I meant. And just to add..I personally don't think it's because the doctors are getting paid for writing these prescriptions that we have such a problem, I just think some have no back bone. People press on them for these drugs. Same goes for the over prescribed "z-pac" every time you have a sniffle. Maybe some are lazy orrrr maybe over worked and don't have time to form the proper patient-doctor relationship. Whatever it is it will come back to bite them if these pharmacy hold-ups become more common.

I believe that health care and medicine is the RIGHT of every American and the entire system should be nationalized to ensure the fair rationing of healthcare. The people can afford the best get the best, everyone deserves the same quality of care. What would Jesus do?

My Mother is on a lot of medication, she's diabetic, she has high blood pressure, she gets the gout, and it doesn't seem decent that people are getting rich from her misery.

http://www.newsday.com/long-island/report-oxycodone-prescriptions-skyrocket-1.3442993

I can only assume that Doctors are filling out these prescriptions right ? So would it follow that the increase of painkiller addictions has some relation to the increase in prescriptions written by doctors. So would you consider doctors to be the least liable.

It seems that mamy doctors prescribe painkillers even when not requested by the patient. Theyre too quick to keep their patients totally pain free.
My doctors have done that for me and I never take painkillers. But I do go to the pharmacy to fill the prescrption for $5, just in case I ever need it. But Id rather deal with a little pain than lose control of my body. I must have thrown out a dozen containers of Oxycondone over the years. Its no woner my garbagemen are so friendly towatds me.

They have a safe way to dispose of unused drugs. By throwing them in the garbage they leach into the ground water. The police do a collection, no questions asked.