The Feds and other bureaucrats keep going back doing the same thing concerning substance abuse. No matter what substance they are trying to “control” they are using identification that can and is forged… driver’s license and/or SSN. In the State of KY, Pharmacist are required to get a SSN or driver’s license number.. which is then reported to the PMP database. To the best of my knowledge no healthcare professional has access to the state’s drivers license computerized database. The SS database is available to employers for hiring purposes… nothing else. So Pharmacists take these numbers and used them as valid and report them to the PMP. In reality, only the legit patient will routinely present valid ID. Lets admit it, if your were an abuser or diverter… would you give your correct name/driver’s license, SSN to every pharmacy where you had a Rx filled? So these databases have the really important data – abusers/diverters – is somewhere between invalid and questionable. On top of this, the number of healthcare professionals that have bothered to sign up to use these databases is small and the utilization is miniscule.
If they were really serious, they would mandate that all healthcare professionals verify ID with driver’s license and SSN database on all NEW PATIENTS that are going to get a controlled substance. If a person is going to mis-represent that information.. what other information (symptoms/conditions) are they going to not be forthcoming about?
Filed under: General dumb-ass problems
The war on drugs is misdirected at this time. The idea controls.on.pharmaceutical is an easy way out. Much less effort and expense that busting dealers and users.