Government Aims to Cut Misuse of Prescription Drugs by 15 Percent in Five Years

A new government strategy aims to cut the use of prescription painkillers by 15 percent in five years. The plan includes doctor training, promoting prescription databases in all states and increased focus on rooting out illegal ‘pill mill’ clinics, the Associated Press reports.

Gil Kerlikowske, Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, announced the plan will include a requirement that doctors who prescribe oxycodone and other opioids undergo training on proper prescription practices. The plan, called Epidemic: Responding to America’s Prescription Drug Abuse Crisis, also includes a media campaign about the dangers of opioids.

A major part of the proposal will be a push for prescription drug databases in every state, the AP reports. Now 35 states have prescription drug monitoring programs, and eight more states, including Florida, the epicenter of the pill mills, have authorized databases that are not yet running. A fourth part of the plan focuses on aggressively enforcing laws against pill mills.