Drug Alcohol Treatment Center Orange County

Addiction Treatment Versus More Prison Time

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Wed, 23 May 2012 15:09:00 +0000

A little over two years ago we wrote about Cameron Douglas. At the time, Cameron had pleaded guilty to a serious drug crime. This guilty plea was the culmination of the results of his addiction which he admits to struggling with since the age of 13. As Cameron grew up and passed from adolescence to adulthood all the parental support and family resources could not convince Cameron to accept treatment. And so the years went by and eventually Cameron resorted to dealing methamphetamine and cocaine to support his own addiction to heroin. Cameron's story is not unique except for the fact that his story's visibility perhaps can help our justice system to understand that addiction treatment might better serve the individual and society at large.

So in 2010 Cameron was sentenced to serve five years in federal prison. This past December (2011) Cameron was given an additional four and one-half years, because he had been caught in prison with heroin and Suboxone. When the additional sentence was imposed experts felt it was unusually harsh, as most prisoners caught with drugs simply lose some of their prison privileges.

Here's a Reuters News covering the 2011 sentencing hearing:

This past week a group of well-known addiction doctors filed a legal campaign (brief) to argue that it is better to treat drug addiction, as opposed to sentence one to more prison time. This news prompted headlines in the New York Times and other prominent media outlets. This is a good thing, not because Cameron's story of addiction is unusual; but he comes from a well-known family which aids in making his story and others visible.

The New York Times article quoted one of the doctors who signed the brief - Dr. Robert Newman, the director of the Baron Edmond de Rothschild Chemical Dependency Institute at Beth Israel Medical Center:

"My outrage is as a physician for someone who has a medical condition which has been ignored...what the judge has imposed has zero benefits for the community and has staggering consequences for society."

Maybe this legal campaign can be a beginning. Maybe using the face of Cameron Douglas to start this battle will aid in getting the attention of the public and our legislators. Cameron Douglas is like your son, your nephew, your cousin, your brother, your neighbor, your co-worker or your spouse. Right now his is the face of addiction. Let's be hopeful that the efforts of these addiction experts can start the important conversation about getting treatment and offering treatment (even behind prison bars).

Cardinal Health Settles With DEA

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Mon, 21 May 2012 13:02:00 +0000

The seal of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Last week the DEA finally reached a settlement with Cardinal Health. Cardinal Health is the second-largest drug distributor in the United States. According to the settlement Cardinal Health has been suspended from selling and shipping painkillers and other drugs for two years. This part of the settlement specifically applies to distribution from their Lakeland, FL facility.

According to the USA Today article:

"This is the second time the DEA has taken action against Cardinal. In 2008, Cardinal paid a $34 million fine after the DEA accused it of shipping excessive amounts of hydrocodone, another powerful painkiller, to Internet pharmacies. As part of that settlement, the DEA suspended licenses at three distribution facilities for a year."

The DEA is still considering civil penalties and fines. For the next five years, Cardinal Health has also agreed to:

Review orders for the controlled drugs at each of Cardinal's 28 distribution facilities
Routinely visit pharmacies that they distribute to observe any signs of diversion
Hire more field inspectors to specifically follow Florida pharmacies

We will continue to follow this story.

Teen Prescription Drug Abuse Epidemic

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Wed, 16 May 2012 14:28:00 +0000

Over the past three years we have talked about the dangers of prescription drug abuse, particularly as it relates to teens and young adults. As summer approaches and school vacation begins we thought it would be helpful to once again remind parents that the first place young people find prescription drugs is usually in the family medicine cabinet and when that supply runs out, then young people will turn to their friends and the street to feed their addiction.

This past month a new independent film premiered at the Newport Beach Film Festival. The name of the film is Behind the Orange Curtain. Every showing was sold out, which tells us that people are eager to understand this epidemic and to know that it is an epidemic that can be found in every county across the United States. This film should be a wake-up call to all parents, but then again they probably don't need to go to the movies to witness the teen prescription drug abuse epidemic.

Here is a short news story from KABC-TV, Los Angeles. Start summer vacation by being informed. Take three minutes out of your day to watch this video...it could save the life of your child.

Ted Williams Celebrates First Sober Birthday

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Mon, 14 May 2012 18:03:00 +0000

It has been a while since we last wrote about Ted Williams. In fact, the last time we posted about Ted was on February 14, 2011. From the time Ted was discovered, by a reporter for the Columbus Dispatch, living on streets of Columbus, Ohio, his story gained headlines and his recovery became a national news story. We saw him interviewed on NBC, CBS, and featured on the Dr. Phil show. We read about him going to rehab and leaving rehab...and then we didn't hear about him for over a year.

But on May 4, 2012, Ted celebrated his first sober birthday and today Matt Lauer of NBC's Today Show interviewed Ted and got to learn what this first year of sobriety has been like for Ted. You can watch the interview here:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Ted's is a remarkable story, but at the same time it is a story that plays out every day in every city and town across America. People suffering from the disease of addiction do find sobriety...one day at a time by focusing on staying sober one day at a time.

You might be interested to know that Ted has co-written a book, simply called A Golden Voice. Ted is telling his story, undoubtedly it will give others hope as they start their recovery.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Meet Noah Welch

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Wed, 09 May 2012 20:48:00 +0000

Craniofacial features associated with fetal alcohol syndrome (Photo credit: Wikipedia)Over the past years we have often written here about fetal alcohol syndrome. It is a serious problem and one that most people don't understand, have never witnessed or frankly think it will never happen to their baby. A few months ago I said to a friend of mine: "If only teen-agers (boys and girls), college students (men and women) and future parents of all ages could learn up close and personal what a child is subjected to when they are born with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)." If only...

Meet Noah Welch! Noah is 11 and according to his adoptive parents, he is starting his own business. He is now a public speaker and motivates his audiences to learn about fetal alcohol syndrome. As Noah's mom says: “All you really need to know is it’s the number one preventable cause of mental retardation in our country."

The News-Herald in Lake Havasu City, AZ reports that:

"Welch didn’t learn to smile until he was nine months old, and he didn’t learn to feed himself until he was five years old, his adoptive mother, Maureen Welch said.

He’s fed twice a day through a feeding tube; his head, eyes, mouth and jaw are smaller than average; another birth defect makes it hard for him to breathe; his chest is caved in; his brain development isn’t complete; and his coordination isn’t average."

Think about Noah the next time you offer someone a drink? If you are thinking of becoming pregnant, think about Noah. He is not just a funny looking kid. What you see could have been prevented with responsible behavior.

Marijuana Cultivators Buying Foreclosed Homes to Grow

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Tue, 08 May 2012 01:04:00 +0000

It is no secret that many Americans are struggling with the current state of the economy; people continue losing their jobs and in many cases even their homes. Homes that are foreclosed on are often times sold relatively inexpensively. Medical marijuana is being used to pay for these homes in order for cultivators to have another grow house, according to a new report by the New York Times.

Many of these homes are in high-end neighborhoods where most people would not be suspect says the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). DEA spokesman Rusty Payne stated to the newspaper that, “They’re buying them in places like Northern California, where the real estate market’s really taken a turn for the worse.” Over 70 percent of all marijuana plants confiscated nationwide in 2010 were located in California.

“Ten years ago if there was a grow house, we’d seize all their equipment and lamps, and they would be prosecuted,” Sergeant Jeff Bassett of the Vallejo, California, Police Department, told the newspaper. “Now the chances of being caught, or of being prosecuted if you are, are substantially less than they were 10 years ago.”

Teenage Marijuana Use on the Rise

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Wed, 02 May 2012 22:42:00 +0000

Marijuana consumption is becoming more and more popular amongst teenagers, with nearly one in 10 teenagers smoking marijuana at least 20 or more times a month, according to a new survey. The survey was released Wednesday by The Partnership at Drugfree.org, the findings showed that in the past-month marijuana use rose from 19 percent in 2008, to 27 percent last year, the Associated Press reports.

The Partnership Attitude Tracking Study found past-year use of marijuana rose from 31 percent in 2008, to 39 percent (six million teens) in 2011. The survey found lifetime use increased from 39 percent in 2008, to 47 percent (eight million teens) in 2011.

“Parents are talking about cocaine and heroin, things that scare them,” Steve Pasierb, President and CEO of The Partnership at Drugfree.org, told the AP. “Parents are not talking about prescription drugs and marijuana. They can’t wink and nod. They need to be stressing the message that this behavior is unhealthy.”

Medical marijuana may play a part in the rise, with a number of teenagers’ parents applying for their medical card. Teenagers will naturally assume that marijuana use must be safe if their parents are using the drug.

60 Minute Report About Addiction

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 23:48:00 +0000

Addiction is one of the most complex diseases to understand, despite all the science and expertise at our disposal. There is hardly a family in America that doesn’t have an individual who struggles with addiction in one form or another. Fortunately, as time goes by, we understand addiction more and more, thanks to a handful of scientists.

Dr. Nora Volkow, head of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, has revolutionized how science and medicine view addiction: as a disease, not a character defect. She was interviewed by 60 Minutes’ Morley Safer. Please take the time to watch the short video below:

National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 02:54:00 +0000

The seal of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)As we approach National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day on April 28th 2012, we should take time and reflect upon how serious the prescription drug epidemic is and how important safely disposing of one’s unused drugs can be. Believe it or not, the majority of people who use prescription narcotics for the first time acquire the drugs from other people, according to a new survey

Once a habit ensues, going to a doctor to have prescriptions written is the only way to ensure that you will have enough medication to sustain your habit throughout the month, USA Today reports.

More than two-thirds of those who said they had gotten high on painkillers for the first time in the past year received the pills from family or friends, according to an analysis of data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, scheduled to be released on Wednesday,.

Estimates show that 2.4 million Americans start abusing prescription drugs annually. About one-third of new users are adolescents, according to the report. Almost 6 percent of young adults ages 18 to 25, and 3 percent of teenagers, say they regularly get high on prescription drugs.

Two-thirds of people who used painkillers to get high less than once a week got pills for free, or stole them from a relative or friend, the survey found. Among regular users, 28 percent said they bought the pills from a relative, friend, drug dealer or online. Twenty-six percent had prescriptions from at least one doctor.

The Take Back event is sponsored by the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Walgreens Agreed To Settle Allegations

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 03:39:00 +0000

Walgreens (Photo credit: Wikipedia)Billions of dollars are made every year from the sales of prescription drugs. Pharmacies across the globe have a vested interest in convincing customers to fill their prescription at their store. Many of the prescriptions filled every day are paid for by the government, but it is illegal for pharmacies to give incentives to those on state health programs to fill their prescriptions.

Walgreens has agreed to pay the government $7.9 million to settle allegations that the company gave people enrolled in government-run health programs $25 gift cards for switching their prescriptions over to the pharmacy chain, according to the Justice Department.

The gift cards were only to be offered to those paying for their medications privately or with self pay insurance, but Walgreens would ignore the exemptions.

“This case represents the government’s strong commitment to pursuing improper practices in the retail pharmacy industry that have the effect of manipulating patient decisions,” Stuart F. Delery, Acting Assistant Attorney General with the U.S. Justice Department, said in a news release.

12-Step for Teenagers

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 20:06:00 +0000

More teenagers are abusing drugs to the point where they require substance abuse treatment. According to new study, teenagers in treatment for substance abuse can benefit from 12-step programs. In the past there was little research conducted on how effective these programs are for adolescents, HealthDay reports.

127 teens who were outpatients in substance abuse treatment programs participated in the study. They were evaluated when they began the study, and again three, six and 12 months later.

The researchers found about one-quarter to one-third of the teens attended Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) or Narcotics Anonymous (NA) meetings throughout the year-long study period, and that the more meetings the participants went to, the better they did with their problem throughout the year.

“Importantly, youth who also were in contact with an AA or NA sponsor or who participated verbally during AA/NA meetings had an even better outcome over and above the positive effects from merely attending,” researcher John F. Kelly of the Center for Addiction Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital said in a news release. “These findings support the common clinical recommendation that individuals should ‘go to meetings, get a sponsor, and get active.’ This is the first evidence to support this common clinical recommendation among young people.”

“It is also a good idea to facilitate a good match between the patient’s primary substance, cannabis/other drugs or alcohol, and the mutual-help organization to which they are being referred, Marijuana Anonymous, NA or AA. Not doing this can lead to a poor initial match, which can be difficult to overcome,” Kelly said.

Thomas Kinkade's Death

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 21:51:00 +0000

There is hardly a person in America who has not seen a Thomas Kinkade painting or replica sculptures. Kinkade was known as "The Painter of Light," he was an Evangelical Christian who created idealistic landscape scenes many of which were inspired by the Bible.

When reports came out last week that at age 54, Kinkade died peacefully in his sleep at the home that he built many people were skeptical about the report. Now news reports are painting a different picture of the “Painter of Light”, apparently he had been drinking all night when he went unconscious and stopped breathing.

Kinkade’s legacy may not have been as angelic as one might have gathered from his paintings. A 2006 LA Times article lists the following incidents: "an allegedly drunken Kinkade heckled illusionists Siegfried and Roy; cursed a former employee's wife who came to his side when he fell off a barstool; fondled a startled woman's breasts at a signing party; and urinated on a Winnie the Pooh figure at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim."

At the time of his death he was dealing with a number of arbitration claims from owners of his galleries across the country, and the LA Times reports that one gallery even filed for bankruptcy in 2010. The lawyer on the case called Kinkade a "deadbeat", saying that "Kinkade's word is as worthless as his artwork."

When Kinkade passed away his debt was enormous by most standards, owing approximately $9 million to at least 165 creditors, Newser reports. Sadly, Thomas Kinkade reportedly suffered from alcoholism before he relapsed and passed away. You never know which drink is going to be your last. The disease of alcoholism can be a killer, but, it doesn’t have to be if one reaches out for help.

Link Prescription Drug Databases

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 22:08:00 +0000

The fight against prescription drug abuse, “pill mills”, and doctor shopping cannot happen in only one state, every state needs to do their part and work together if real change is going to be seen. Currently, there are many states that have prescription drug monitoring systems in place, but, they are not linked together which means people can travel from state to stay in order to acquire the drugs they need either to feed their habit or to restock their inventory for business.

Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear stated this week at the National Rx Drug Abuse Summit in Orlando that if we are going to make any progress in fighting this epidemic every state must link their prescription drug monitoring programs together.

“No state or community is an island. It will take all of us – working across geographical and agency borders – to make headway against prescription drug abuse,” Beshear said in a statement. He is urging legislators in Kentucky to pass a bill this week that would require pain management clinics to be owned by licensed physicians. The measure also would give the Attorney General control of prescription monitoring data.

The state of Kentucky will be signing an agreement to share and receive prescription drug dispensing data with at least 20 other states, according to Beshear. The Kentucky All Schedule Prescription Electronic Reporting program will join the National Association of Board of Pharmacy’s Prescription Monitoring Program InterConnect.

California Prescription Drug Monitoring System Failure

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 20:02:00 +0000

The most effective way to gain control of the ever growing prescription drug epidemic in America is by the use of prescription drug monitoring systems. Unfortunately, many states have yet to use such systems efficiently, rendering such programs ineffective. California happens to be one of those states due to the fact that enrollment in the program is optional and on top of that funding for the program continues to be cut, according to The New York Times.

Despite the major health concerns associated with prescription drug abuse, only 1,216 pharmacists and 6,755 doctors are signed up to use the prescription drug monitoring system; when you consider that there are 165,000 physicians and pharmacists statewide it is unbelievable to think of how many are actually participating. Governor Brown cut $71 million from the state’s Department of Justice budget which has left little money to run the program effectively due to a lack of staffing, according to the article.

Doctors and pharmacists who use the system complain that it is slow and difficult to use, and cannot analyze data in a systematic manner. “It’s hit or miss,” said Dr. Richard Gracer, who runs a pain management clinic. “Once in a while it’s slow. Sometimes it gives the wrong answers. If the amount of doctors who should be using it signed up, it would probably die right away.”

Mike Small, who runs the state program, said, “Doctors don’t want to spend 10 minutes waiting when they have a patient in front of them.”

Alcohol Interlock Devices In All Vehicles

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 00:06:00 +0000

In the not too distant future our motor vehicles may be much smarter and be able to tell if the driver has consumed alcohol without having to breathe into an alcohol ignition interlock device which are currently installed into the vehicles of motorists who have had a DUI, The Wall Street Journal reports. The new devices could be embedded in a starter button or shift lever. Nearly one-third of drivers killed in car crashes have been drinking with blood alcohol levels of 0.08 or higher, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

In the next ten years or so, experts believe that the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety (DADSS) could be available for all vehicles regardless if you have a history of drinking and driving.

There has been a bill proposed that would give the NHTSA’s alcohol detector program $24 million over two years period. This would allow the agency to equip 100 or more cars with the new alcohol detection device prototypes. One device would measure alcohol in the driver’s breath and the other would take a reading from the driver’s skin.

The people working on creating the new system are working with the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The Wall Street Journal article points out that the next goal would be to develop vehicles that would drive a drunk owner home.

16 states require those with a history of DUI’s to install alcohol interlock devices in their vehicles. If the driver has consumed even a drop of alcohol, whether from mouth-wash or a cocktail, the vehicle will not start.

Government Anti-Smoking Ad Campaign

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 22:04:00 +0000

Tobacco is by far one of the hardest substances to quit and takes thousands of lives every year. The new anti-smoking ad campaign sponsored by the government appears to have made an impact on a number of people. The campaign features former smokers who talk about how tobacco has affected their lives in negative ways.

Since the campaign began the number of calls to a toll-free telephone hotline whose mission is to help people quit smoking has doubled.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), calls to 1-800-QUIT-NOW totaled more than 33,000 in the first week of the ad campaign, compared with less than 14,500 the week before. On top of that, the number of clicks to the government’s www.smokefree.gov website raised to about 66,000, from about 20,000, reports USA Today.

The new ad campaign will air for 12 weeks, costing $54 million. It is believed by the CDC that the campaign will help about 50,000 smokers quit.

Whip-Its On the Rise

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 22:54:00 +0000

Over the past couple decades inhalants have claimed a number of lives and yet continue to be popular amongst teenagers and young adults. A new report has found that the tiny little canisters of nitrous oxide, known as Whip-Its, are once again extremely popular, according to ABC News.

Whip-Its have become the most popular inhalant among young adults, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Whip-Its are easy to obtain at almost any age and nitrous oxide can be found in many forms.

“What makes them really popular is they’re easily accessible,” William Oswald, founder of a drug treatment center, told ABC News. “You can get them at a head shop, you can get it out of a whipped cream bottle.”

People who buy Whip-Its on the Internet are typically not asked their date of birth or what the product is intended for, they are usually not used for making whipped cream which is their intended use.

Whip-Its can be deadly according to Dr. Westley Clark, Director of the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment at SAMHSA. He stated that inhaling nitrous oxide cuts off oxygen to the brain which causes severe damage to the heart, nervous system, and other organs.

Emmotional Support from Middle School Teachers

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 23:05:00 +0000

The pre-teenage years can be very difficult for a lot of people due to the vast changes going on in the mind and body. A new report has shown that middle school students who receive emotional support from the teachers will be less likely to engage in early use of drugs and alcohol.

521 middle school students in Seattle took part in the new study. Teacher support could be anything from feeling close to a teacher, or just being able to talk about their problems. Middle school students who had higher levels of separation anxiety from their parents were also less likely to start using alcohol early, the study found.

“Our results were surprising,” lead researcher Dr. Carolyn McCarty, of Seattle Children’s Research Institute, said in a news release. “We have known that middle school teachers are important in the lives of young people, but this is the first data-driven study which shows that teacher support is associated with lower levels of early alcohol use.”

Dr. McCarty believes that students who have separation anxiety may be less susceptible to negative influences from their peers, which could drive them to engage with drugs and alcohol.

“We need to be aware of and monitor early adolescent stress levels, and parents, teachers and adults need to tune into kids’ mental health,” Dr. McCarty said. “We know that youth who initiate substance abuse before age 14 are at a high risk of long-term substance abuse problems and myriad health complications.”

The study appears in Psychology of Addictive Behaviors.

Tobacco Kills 50 Million People

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 22:43:00 +0000

American Cancer Society (Photo credit: Wikipedia)Tobacco continues to be one of the world’s leading causes of death with fifty million people worldwide having died from tobacco-related causes over the past decade, according to a new report by the World Lung Foundation and the American Cancer Society.

The WLF and the ACF estimates that if things continue the way they have been going a billion people will die from tobacco use and exposure in this century.

Fortunately, smoking in the developed world is on the decline, but sadly, rates are climbing in the third-world, according to The Tobacco Atlas. Worldwide, 6 million people died from tobacco related illness' last year, almost 80 percent occurring in low and middle-income countries.

In China, tobacco kills more people than anything else, with 1.2 million deaths per year, according to The Tobacco Atlas. It is expected that by 2030, 3.5 million people will lose their life a year, Reuters reports.

Unbelievably, the world’s six biggest tobacco companies made $35.1 billion in profits in 2010, an amount equal to the combined earnings of Coca-Cola, Microsoft and McDonald’s.

“The tobacco industry thrives on ignorance of the true harms of tobacco use and using misinformation to subvert health policies that could save millions,” Peter Baldini, Chief Executive Officer of the World Lung Foundation, said in a news release.

Addiction is Addiction

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 22:10:00 +0000

Every year thousands of people seek help for their addiction to one substance or another. Unfortunately, the substance one is addicted to can dictate how long one will be covered by their insurance company for treatment.

People who are addicted to opioids may be denied coverage for treatment all together, according to an Oklahoma addiction specialist Dr. Charles Shaw.

Shaw finds it difficult to get insurance companies to cover extended stays in substance abuse treatment programs. Sadly, the longer one stays in residential treatment the better. “There’s no question—the longer you stay the better,” he told NewsOK.com.

When it comes to alcohol addiction insurance companies are more likely to cover it than opioid treatment. If they do decide to cover opioid treatment it is usually only for several days - which is not enough according to Shaw.

Nicole Amend, a spokeswoman with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Oklahoma, the state’s largest health insurance company, said it covers extended stays in drug treatment centers “when medically necessary.” In a statement, Amend said, “When seeking treatment for an addiction, behavioral health coverage is not dependent on either the member’s age or the type of substance addiction. However, the type of substance and the member’s age may impact the appropriate treatment option available.”

Judge Backs DEA Against CVS

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 21:43:00 +0000

The fight continues against prescription drug abuse and misuse in Florida. On Tuesday, a federal judge ruled that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) acted correctly when they suspended the controlled-substances licenses of two CVS stores in Florida. The DEA believed that the stores had inadequately monitored oxycodone sales. Judge Reggie Walton delayed his ruling until this morning so that CVS would have ample time to appeal, according to The Wall Street Journal.

This case stems from extremely high volumes of oxycodone sales at the two CVS stores, leading the DEA to suspend their licenses in February. Federal Judge Amy Berman Jackson, of the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., gave CVS a temporary restraining order which allowed the company to continue to fill controlled prescription drugs at the two pharmacies.

The DEA claims that the two pharmacies were “filling prescriptions far in excess of the legitimate needs of its customers”. A CVS spokesperson stated that the company had taken steps, with the DEA’s knowledge, to stop filling prescriptions from physicians thought to be prescribing controlled narcotics improperly.

The average pharmacy in the United States in 2011 ordered approximately 69,000 oxycodone dosage units, these two pharmacies, together ordered more than three million dosage units during the same year, according to the DEA. Unbelievably, the two CVS pharmacies in question are located only 5.5 miles apart.

LSD for Alcoholism

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 21:35:00 +0000

There are a number of drugs in this country that we do not fully understand because they have been deemed either hazardous or not beneficial for medical purposes. Hallucinogens were studied in the past, but were never fully analyzed; any beneficial properties they might have were never fully explored. Studies originally conducted in the 1960s are being analyzed again for the first time and their findings suggest that LSD may help people with alcoholism quit or reduce their drinking.

Test results from six trials were combined, where 536 people with alcoholism took a single dose of LSD. 59 percent of those who took the drug either quit or significantly reduced their drinking, compared to 38 percent of participants who took a smaller dose or used another treatment to prevent drinking, according to Time. There were only eight cases where test subjects experienced adverse effects from the drug but only for the duration of the high.

However, the positive effect of LSD on drinking only lasted about six months, after a year the effects were no longer apparent.

Currently, research is being conducted with a number of illegal drugs to see if they might be possible treatments for conditions including post-traumatic stress disorder, chronic pain, addiction, and depression.

“LSD had a significant beneficial effect on alcohol misuse at the first reported follow-up assessment,” the researchers wrote in the Journal of Psychopharmacology. “The effectiveness of a single dose of LSD compares well with the effectiveness of daily naltrexone [reVia, Vivitrol] acamprosate [Campral], or disulfiram [Antabuse].” Those drugs are approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat alcoholism.

Opioids and Mental Illness

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 22:42:00 +0000

There is no doubt that combat changes people mentally and physically. A number of soldiers who come back from foreign battles experience post-traumatic stress, depression, and anxiety. Hopefully those individuals receive the treatment they require and don’t have to resort to self-medicating in order to cope. Unfortunately, some veterans are being treated with drugs that make treating psychiatric problems much more difficult.

A study was conducted which found that U.S. veterans coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan who have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other psychiatric disorders are twice as likely receive prescription opioids for pain than those who don’t.

“Veterans using these narcotic painkillers had worse clinical outcomes,” lead researcher Dr. Karen Seal of the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center told HealthDay. “Those outcomes were wounds and injuries, alcohol and drug overdoses, opioid overdoses, violent injuries and even suicide. This was particularly true in the group with PTSD.”

141,029 veterans who received at least one non-cancer-related pain diagnosis within a year of entering the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system were included in the study. A total of 15,676 veterans were prescribed opioids within one year of their initial pain diagnosis.

17.8 percent of veterans with PTSD received opioids for pain.
11.7 percent of veterans with other mental health diagnoses received opioids for pain.

Compared to:

6.5 percent of veterans without mental health disorders received opioids for pain.

Of those who were prescribed pain medication, 22.7 percent of veterans with PTSD received higher-dose opioids, compared with 15.9 percent of those without mental health disorders. Veterans with PTSD were also more likely to receive two or more opioids together, as well as obtain early opioid refills.

“Returning combat veterans are presenting to primary care in large numbers and are seeking relief from physical and psychological pain. Extra care should be taken when prescribing opioids to relieve their distress,” the researchers note in a news release.

“Integrated treatments that target both mental health disorders and pain simultaneously are effective for both problems and may decrease harms resulting from opioid therapy.”

The results appear in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Synthetic Drugs Cause Kidney Failure

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 21:43:00 +0000

Synthetic drugs have been in the headlines several times over the last year as more and more communities have become affected by them. As time passes new side effects caused by such drugs are being discovered. According to a new report by health officials “Spice” caused kidney failure in three young people, and vomiting and back pain in a number of other people in Wyoming.

“At this point, we are viewing use of this drug as a potentially life-threatening situation,” State Epidemiologist Tracy Murphy said in a statement. Young adults and teenagers do not realize the dangers associated with synthetic drugs until it is too late which has sparked a health crisis across the country.

“Based on our information from the doctors, the three people with kidney failure are in pretty serious shape; they’re very sick,” said Bob Herrington, Director of the Casper-Natrona County Health Department. The chemicals used to make drugs like Spice and K2 are now classified as Schedule I substances, having “a high potential for abuse, no accepted medical use for treatment in the United States and a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug under medical supervision.”

The DEA temporarily banned five chemicals whose effects are similar to marijuana in March of last year. Last week, the Drug Enforcement Administration issued a statement that it is extending its ban on synthetic drugs such as Spice and “K2” for another six months.

Drug Testing Welfare Recipients

noreply@blogger.com (Hope By The Sea) — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 23:02:00 +0000

Contrary to popular belief, not as many people on welfare are abusing drugs as you might think. Despite that fact, almost two dozen states are considering measures that would require drug testing for welfare recipients, the Associated Press reports.

It is fair to say that there is a stigma surrounding people who collect welfare, a number of people believe that welfare recipients are milking a broken system and are more likely to use illegal drugs as well as abuse prescription drugs. However, statistics have shown that most welfare recipients do not use their state funding to buy drugs, according to the AP.

In the past, bills that have been put forward have been shut down on the grounds that such testing is unconstitutional. Yet, republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has said he supports drug testing of welfare recipients and Newt Gingrich has said he considers testing as a way to curb drug use and lower related costs to public programs.

An estimated 22.6 million Americans aged 12 or older—8.9 percent of the population—were current illicit drug users, according to the 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Michigan conducted a random drug testing program that showed a similar percentage of its public assistance applicants tested positive.

Florida has been labeled the epicenter of prescription drug abuse in America, but, the state found its welfare applicants were less likely than Americans in general to use drugs. In October, a federal judge halted the Florida law that would require welfare recipients to be tested, ruling it may violate the Constitution’s ban on unreasonable searches and seizures.

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