Obama Administration Takes Action Prescription Drug Abuse

As part of the Obama administration's Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention Plan to tackle the issue of prescription drug abuse, makers of painkillers have been asked to provide educational materials to help train physicians about the correct use of these drugs.The US FDA has sent letters to manufacturers of opioid drugs asking them to prepare materials which can be useful for the physicians or prescribers while counseling patients  about the risks and benefits of opioid use. These documents will contain information regarding proper pain management, patient selection and ensure that their patients understand how to use these drugs safely. These documents will be approved by the FDA. New educational guidelines will be required for manufacturers of hydromorphone, oxycodone, morphine, oxymorphine, morphone, methadone and transdermal fentanyl. These drugs can be highly addictive.
Prescription drug abuse is an alarming public health crisis and its overuse can be as dangerous as street drug abuse. Therefore immediate action is needed on these lines.