The
government's widening crackdown on prescription-drug abuse is having an
unintended consequence: It's making it tougher for people with chronic
pain to get treatment.In recent weeks, federal
regulators have sharply dialed up their effort to combat the black market
in pain killers. The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy
this month announced a $148 million plan targeting illegal use of
prescription tranquilizers, sedatives and other drugs, with a goal of
curbing the flow of drugs such as OxyContin to abusers.
Separately, the Drug Enforcement Administration is
reviewing a proposal to reclassify hydrocodone, the most commonly
prescribed pain drug in the U.S., in a more tightly regulated class of
drugs. If the switch occurs, patients would be unable to get refills
without obtaining a new prescription from a doctor"