Opioids: The current view

Opioids are powerful drugs designed to alleviate tremendous pain. Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs (PDMPs) are intended to reduce the amount of doctor shopping and opioid misuse. If you are a law-abiding citizen who does not misuse the pharmacology system then this does not affect you. It is widely understood that certain people have a genuine need for regularly prescribed pain medications. With that being said, there are many people who misuse the system because certain prescription drugs, namely opioids, are highly addictive.

Opioid misuse is one of the fastest growing drug problems on a national level and within the state of Missouri. Drug overdoses are currently the leading cause of accidental deaths in the U.S., claiming 47,055 lives in 2014. Furthermore, 18,893 of those deaths are directly linked to opioid overdoses (American Society of Addiction Medicine). Forty-nine states, the District of Columbia, and even Guam currently have PDMPs. The only state that’s missing? Missouri.

Concern was expressed that private information would be compromised as a result of PDMPs. Fear not, you have to be authorized via state-law to have access to PDMP information; this includes doctors, pharmacists, and law enforcement. There’s very little to worry about when it comes to private information being leaked from an air-tight program such as this.

Drug Monitoring Programs are currently the most promising defense against opioid misuse.

Their main purpose is to protect public health and safety while supporting the legitimate use of opioids and other pain medications.

Dakota Conrad, Cape Girardeau