I have a couple of questions.  1.  Have you heard of a pain management doctor taking away xanax that he never prescribed or has anything to do with?  Nor does he even know why I’m taking it?  He took away my Tizanidine last month, now it’s my xanax.  I have been on them for over 20 years for the things that gave me PTSD, OCD, panic attack, nightmares, anxiety….the list goes on.  Who is he to tell me to stop taking them?  Can you direct me somewhere in hopes I can get this turned around?

2. Remember those 2 guys that sued?  I can’t remember the website or group it was in.  Do you still remember the article?  I really want to start this once all my puppies have gone to their new homes.  

Thanks Steve!

I have heard of some docs insisting that a pt stop taking medication being prescribed by other prescribers the pt is seeing and they are being prescribed certain medications.

Your pain doc may have come to that conclusion from the Beer’s medication list  http://www.pharmacist.com/node/84786

this is just one link… Beer’s list medications that could POSSIBLY cause serious side effects in the elderly…  IMO, according to Beer’s most people over 50 should not take a whole list of classes of medications… also IMO.. by and large it is a bunch of BS

Could have also come to the conclusion from the “medical geniuses “ at the DEA that have publicly stated that they see no valid medical need for a pt taking a opiate, muscle relaxant, benzo together..  They have come to this medical conclusion because many substance abusers  prefer that combination to be taken together and in “high doses” to get high.. on the street it is referred to as “the Trinity”.. if the substance abuser is lucky enough to get their hands on Oxycodone, Xanax, Soma… it is referred to has “The Holy Trinity”.

Much/most/all of what the DEA is stating as “bad” for pts with medical conditions is based on what they see on the street and what substance abusers are taking/doing..  What substance abusers are doing on the street should have nothing to do with what is prescribed to pts with valid medical needs

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As a longtime customer at my local walgreens , like about 9 years, I have had 2 very disturbing conflicts with several pharmacist . I am a disabled 65 yr old who has a complicated medical history and have been taking the same 2 narcotic meds for 12 yrs same dose same instructions thru my long time and only predrilled my primary dr. Several months back instructions went in as I do every 6 was to fill my hard copy scripts and left them and they were very busy. I came back 1 hr later and drove thru the drive thru the lady said the pharmacist  had questions and needed to contact my dr. This was very strange but I found out he was a fill in.  So I went in and ask him why he needed to contact my dr and I did not care if he did. I they were the same as always for the past 9 yrs. He said he had not called yet and then proceeded to ask me what kind of pain I was being treated for and rhinestone started naming off all my others meds I take on and re gera basis as I have for 9yrs. As I’m standing there people all around me in line and waiting in the seating area I was horrified and embarrassed .  I told him I did not think I had to tell him what my medical history was and so he walked over picked up my 2 scripts and said well I don’t have to fill them for you. I went to another pharmacy  and told them what had just happened and she told me he no right to treat me like that. She filled them and told me to report him to the pharmacy  manager and I did, but he seemed uninterested and so I did not nothing else.

Now, they are changing 1 of my meds to one that upsets my stomach  so I requested to get the ones I had been on for years. I gave them 2 days notice and today the same song and dance as they say they can’t get those from there warehouse any more and probably could not however last month when I requested them with no notice they had them in stock so they filled it. I went to another pharmacy which is embarrassing  and they did have them. 

My point is that I believe if I was a cash paying customer and not a medicare part d customer they would have had tried to a com date me. I believe they are putting a class of senior medicare people in a different class as they are losing money on us. This makes me very upset as I feel like they did care but me but do not really ,  money.

Should I make. Complaint or just let it go? I am on social security disability as well.

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http://www.drugstorenews.com/article/amerisourcebergen-makes-push-curb-opioid-diversion-misuse

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Local Officials Sit Down with Community to Discuss Opioid Epidemic

http://www.mypanhandle.com/news/local-officials-sit-down-with-community-to-discuss-opioid-epidemic/877345033

THERE IS A VIDEO ON THE ABOVE LINK – COULD NOT COPY/EMBED IN THIS POST

BAY COUNTY, Fla. – Policy makers and law enforcement are constantly trying to find ways to put an end to the opioid epidemic that is devastating the nation.

Thursday evening, Representative Jay Trumbull and Bay County Sheriff Tommy Ford, sat down with members of the community for a discussion about opioid addiction.

Scott Clemons, a Board Member for the Big Bend Community Base, said this event is for the local officials to hear the public’s thoughts on this national crisis. 

“It’s not the kind of event where we’re having a panel of experts, Representative Trumbull and Sheriff Ford want people to give their input about their own experiences and their ideas about how we can solve this crisis as a community and as a state,” he said.

Those who have lost someone to drug addictions shared their stories, as well as doctors and pharmacists who deal with pain medications everyday.

Sheriff Tommy Ford said this gave him a perspective he does not get to see everyday.

“I think if we can engage the community we can really make a difference,” he said.

Many members of the community said addiction should be treated like a disease and the community should focus on treatment, while others said the solution should begin with educating students at a young age about this epidemic.

Barb and I went to this meeting last night in Panama City Beach.. there was 4+ dozen people at the meeting, some legislators, law enforcement, a couple of doctors, and large number of people who are social workers or others that work with the consequences of substance abuse.

Local bureaucrat started the meeting by making a short presentation… and of course stated that some 60 K people die of drug over doses.. but to his credit.. did mention that a large percent were not from just opiates or controlled substances… and then at the end of the meeting a state representative talked and quoted the 60 K OPIATE RELATED DEATHS.. in just a matter of a couple of hours the number of people who died from opiate OD’s had JUMPED 50%.

One ER physician stated that he had seen his first newborn dealing with withdrawal from KRATOM..  no way to confirm or deny if that was the only substance that the Mother was using … just that isolated piece of information thrown out ??

One woman … obviously a MJ advocate stating that opiate OD deaths have declined 25% in places where it is legal.. Florida voters approved legalizing MJ in the last election by some 70%-80%… but.. some of the cities/counties have been dragging their feet in granting permits for sellers/dispensers.

One woman, made a statement that the Purdue Pharma family – 5 members – were worth 14 billion and were the cause of all these OD’s… of course Oxycodone was on the market ( Tylox, Percodan, Percocet)  for years before 1996 when Purdue brought out Oxycontin… which was the first long acting Oxycodone.  Her, like most others in that group of Purdue Pharma haters, claim that their promotion of Oxycontin was deceptive..  when they stated that when used in chronic pain .. it was not addicting…  which is true when treating chronic pain pts… when prescribed/taken by people who have undiagnosed addictive personality disorder…  the outcome is typically quite different.

Could we come to the conclusion of blaming  all the deaths from distracted driving and texting directly/indirectly to Steve Jobs and Apple and the invention of the Iphone ?  Could we come to the conclusion that since Henry Ford invented the assembly line for auto manufacturing that the FORD FAMILY is directly/indirectly responsible for the 35,000/yr deaths from auto accidents ? How many deaths can be directly/indirectly connected to some industry/invention – tobacco & alcohol come to mind at first.

There was on doctor there who claimed to be a Geriatrician… and he stated publicly that NO ONE every died of opiate cold turkey withdrawal, and that HIGH DOSE opiates have no place out side of the hospital setting…  I spoke with this physician after the meeting and asked him if he did CYP-450 enyzme testing on pts who appear to need high doses… NOPE.. in thinking back.. I am not sure he even knew what  CYP-450 enzyme test really was ..

This does not surprise me, at the turn of the century, we had decided to sell one of our two rental condos, and move full time to our beach condo,  We totally renovated the condo we intended to live in … with things that are more residential – more expensive – and would not take the use/abuse of renters. Barb ended up in one of the two local hospitals with infected diverticulitis .. I am not sure if “they almost killed her” or “they almost let her died”… the quality of the healthcare here at the beach was – IMO – between PATHETIC and MORONIC…  Our condo became our non-rental second home… which it still is.  But I digress

I tried to talk to one of the bureaucrats about the fake use of the word FENTANYL and that there was only one legal and 17 – or so – illegal analgos and that most people were dying from the illegal forms.. his response …a death is a death.. at which point I pointed out the 550,000/yr deaths from the two drugs of Alcohol & Nicotine and got a SHRUG out of the bureaucrat… so a death is not really a death..

One person who indicated they were a representative of United Way stated that we needed more CIVIL ASSET FORFEITURES to help fund more services for the substance abusers.

Many stated that addiction is a disease and a substance abuser is not going to “clean up” until they are ready…

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Hi, good morning, I need to ask questions regarding about a incident that happen with CVS pharmacist and talking badly about me as patient to my md office.  Also, refused to give back a prescription that required me and still at this time to take to other pharmacy to get refill.  What are my rights as a patient?  What can I do?  When discussing my prescription which I feel he violated my rights due to fact, that he stated out loud what the md wrote on the prescription,  when other patient around.  What can I do to hold this pharmacy responsible for their actions?

Unless a prescription has been forged, altered or some other reason that it is not a LEGAL PRESCRIPTION… and the authorities should be contacted… otherwise, the prescription BELONGS TO THE PT… and a Pharmacist confiscating a pt’s prescription is nothing short of THEFT. Since the authorities were not called… I must presume that the prescription was LEGAL…

I can only speculate why the Pharmacist confiscated this prescription and one of them could be that the Pharmacist could be involved in abusing or diverting (selling) controlled substances and this would be one way that he/she could get their hands on a C-II drugs without having the Rx dept’s C-II inventory being out of balance. Could even bill the pt’s insurance to lessen his/her out of pocket costs. 

On the down side for the pt and prescriber… if the prescriber gives the pt another prescription and to be filled at a different pharmacy.. the insurance company would reject the claim… because of the previous prescription diverted by the pharmacist that confiscated the first prescription.  Also on the state’s PMP.. it would be viewed as the pt being a pharmacy shopper and the prescriber being viewed as “over prescribing”.

Will the local prosecuting attorney or Sheriff/Chief of police accept and pursue a claim of theft of personal property by a known person ?  I don’t know…  I would suggest that after a week has passed … the pt should contact their insurance company to see their was a claim in their name for the medication on the specific date from that specific pharmacy. I would also suggest that the pt request the prescriber to check the state’s PMP database to see if the prescription was filled under the pt’s name on that date … if the prescription had been filled for cash.

If any of those issues prove to be true the pt then should contact the chain pharmacy’s legal dept and/or loss prevention with the facts that would suggest diversion by one of their employees.

I see almost every week where a healthcare professional is charged with drug diversion..  this theory is not far outside of what is going on everyday in healthcare.

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Pharmacy Board Releases Guidance on How to Issue a Valid Prescription

https://www.natlawreview.com/article/pharmacy-board-releases-guidance-how-to-issue-valid-prescription

Ohio prescribers need to be aware of new rules for prescribing controlled substances that will take effect on December 29, 2017. First, prescribers will be required to include the first four characters of the ICD-10 diagnosis code or the full CDT procedure code on all prescriptions for opioids.^[1] Similarly, beginning June 1, 2018, prescribers will need to include the ICD-10 diagnosis or CPT procedure code on prescriptions for all other controlled substances. In addition, prescribers will be required to indicate the days’ supply on all prescriptions for controlled substances and gabapentin starting June 1, 2018.

The aforementioned requirements follow previously enacted rules for prescribing opioid analgesics for the treatment of acute pain.^[2] These rules, which became effective August 31, 2017, generally limit the prescribing of opioid analgesics for acute pain to no more than a seven (7) day supply for adults and a five (5) day supply for minors. Prescribers may prescribe opioids for an acute condition in excess of the day supply limits only if they provide a specific reason in the patient’s medical record. Finally, the acute prescribing rules also require that the total morphine equivalent dose (MED) not exceed an average of 30 MED per day.

To assist prescribers in complying with these and other requirements, Take Charge Ohio, in partnership with the State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy, recently published a guide entitled “Issuing a Valid Prescription – What Every Prescriber Needs to Know,” which can be accessed at:https://www.pharmacy.ohio.gov/Documents/Pubs/Special/DangerousDrugs/Issuing%20a%20Valid%20Prescription%20%20What%20Every%20Prescriber%20Needs%20to%20Know.pdf.

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And now this is hitting not only me but my son….he had a bad seizure, fell down a flight of stairs, broke his collarbone…was hospitalized. Discharge notes…Advil as needed. He is in misery

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www.fff.org/2017/12/06/dea-assassinate-drug-offenders/

Ever since President Richard Nixon declared a war on drugs, proponents of this massive federal program have lamented its manifest failure. If only officials would just “crack down” in the war on drugs, drug-war advocates have exclaimed over the years, we could finally win it.

Alas, for more than four decades drug warriors have had to accept reality: their massive federal program has failed. It’s turned out to be a big loser. No one, not even the most ardent drug warrior in the country, has ever been ready to declare victory in the war on drugs.

Moreover, it’s not as if the drug warriors haven’t periodically initiated massive crackdowns in their drug war:

• Mandatory minimum sentences that have locked drug-war defendants away for big parts of their lives.
• Asset-forfeiture laws that have enabled law-enforcement officials to seize homes, businesses, cars, boats, motels, and other property without filing suit and securing a judgment against the victims.
• Surprise violent drug-war raids on people’s homes, including in the middle of the night.
• Warrantless searches of people walking down the street.
• Warrantless searches of cars traveling on streets and highways.
• Fixed highway checkpoints in which cars and occupants are searched, including through the use of drug-war dogs.

All for naught. Despite the crackdowns, the war on drugs has still not been won.

Last year, a 71-year-old Filipino politician named Rodrigo Duterte became president of the Philippines. Immediately, he became a darling of many American proponents of the war on drugs, including even Republican President Donald Trump.

The reason for admiring Duterte?

Duterte promised what American drug warriors have always wanted: a real crackdown in the war on drugs, one that would finally bring victory in this decades-long government program.

Why do I emphasize the word “real”? Because in Duterte’s mind — and in the minds of many American drug warriors — all those steps taken by U.S. officials listed above did not constitute a real crackdown in the war on drugs. A real crackdown would entail simply killing every single person suspected of violating drug laws, including both consumers and sellers of illicit drugs. As Duterte told a crowd on the eve of his 2016 election, “If I make it to the presidential palace I will do just what I did as mayor. You drug pushers, holdup men, and do-nothings, you better get out because I’ll kill you.”

Duterte’s supporters loved it. After all, why bother with arrests, prosecutions, convictions, mandatory-minimum sentences, asset forfeiture, and overcrowded prisons when you can simply kill drug-war violators? What better way to win the war on drugs than that?

According to Human Rights Watch, Duterte’s drug war “has led to the deaths of over 12,000 Filipinos to date, mostly urban poor.”

Despite all extra-judicial killings, however, the war on drugs in the Philippines still hasn’t been won. In fact, every indication is that the war on drugs will continue through the end of Duterte’s term in office and beyond.

Two questions naturally arise:

1. Should U.S. officials employ a real drug-war crackdown here in the United States by implementing extra-judicial killings of drug-war violators, as Duterte has done?

2. What good would it do, given that not even that level of crackdown has brought drug-war victory in the Philippines? Indeed, extra-judicial killings haven’t even brought victory to U.S. officials in their never-ending “war on terrorism.”

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Dealing with Delaware’s heroin, opioid epidemic

http://www.wdel.com/news/dealing-with-delaware-s-heroin-opioid-epidemic/article_9d39f6cc-d97f-11e7-848e-7754c7e19e9e.html

While many experts believe involuntary treatment can be effective in dealing with the heroin and opioid crisis in Delaware, there are no surefire answers on how to execute a plan.

“We need every tool in our toolbox to address this epidemic and prevent overdose deaths,” said Dr. Kara Odom Walker, Secretary of the State Department of Health and Social Services.

Odom Walker supports involuntary treatment, but she said the state can’t just deploy the strategy without having regulations, a certification process, observation of how the treatment system would respond.

“The big challenge that other states have faced and not really overcome yet– and that we really have to deal with–is coming up with a facility where you’re actually going to have good outcomes if people were committed there involuntarily,” said Denn. “But I think it is something we should be working towards.”

Kim Jones, is a counselor at Gaudenzia in recovery from heroin and drug addiction, and she said her recovery was born out of involuntary treatment.

“I think in my case, in a way, I actually did go through involuntary treatment, because my treatment was in the federal prison system, so it was certainly effective for me.”

Jones believes involuntary treatment can work and so does Denn, but he said sending innocent people to prison isn’t the answer.

“I think generally speaking prisons aren’t an ideal location for involuntary treatment for somebody who hasn’t committed a crime,” said Denn. “The other types of secure facilities the state currently has aren’t really amendable to it either.”

Dr. Andrew Kolodny, Physicians for Responsible Opioid Prescribing and Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University, said more beds aren’t necessarily needed throughout the country to treat the issue.

He stressed that it’s better that someone recovering from a medical problem get better without medication so they don’t get “stuck” on a drug.

Odom Walker said more access to outpatient therapy is needed in Delaware.

Other speakers at Monday night’s forum at John Dickinson High School included Dr. Sandra Gibney, emergency room doctor and associate chairman of Emergency Services at Saint Francis Healthcare, Dr. Terry Horton, chief of addiction medicine at Christiana Care Health System.

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Xarelto Bleeding Injury Lawsuit $27M Verdict

http://fortworth.legalexaminer.com/fda-prescription-drugs/xarelto-bleeding-injury-lawsuit/

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