The U.S. Senate on May 24 unanimously supported a measure to make getting painkillers more difficult. Now, Sens. Jay Rockefeller and Joe Manchin, both D-W.Va., are praising their Senate colleagues for working in a nonpartisan way to get that bill passed.
"For months now, I've been doing out and listening to the stories of so many people in my state – law enforcement, business owners, school teachers, pastors and especially the children who ask for help getting their parents off the stuff," Manchin said in a statement. "So I worked with all of them to offer an amendment to this bill that would make it harder for anyone to abuse prescription drugs. That bipartisan amendment was submitted on behalf of the countless West Virginians and Americans whose lives have been cut short by drug abuse and the families who are picking up the pieces, and it is on their behalf that I thank my colleagues in the Senate for passing it unanimously."
The amendment, which Manchin sponsored as part of the Food and Drug Administration Safety Act, would reclassify drugs containing hydrocodone as Schedule II substances. Because of the reclassification, patients would need an original prescription for refills, pills would be stored and transported more securely and traffickers would be subject to increased fines and penalties. Hydrocodone, which is highly addictive, is found in drugs such as Vicodin and Lortab.
Senators from both parties supported Manchin's amendment, including Rockefeller.
In addition, Rockefeller introduced a provision to the FDA bill that called for new study tools for health care providers, including doctors, nurses and pharmacists, to promote safe pain management in an effort to reduce the prescription drug epidemic.
Rockefeller, chairman of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on Health Care, held a hearing in March to learn more about the issue.
"Prescription drug abuse is a very real epidemic that we must stop," Rockefeller said. "Too many West Virginia families and communities have been hurt terribly, and I've been fighting to turn the tide on abuse. My provision will make sure that doctors, nurses and health care professionals that prescribe painkillers get the training they need so that they don't' overprescribe drugs and can reduce the potential for patient abuse."
Rockefeller's provision requires the Institute of Medicine to study the scope and scale of prescriber education and training requirements. Currently, no education or certification requirements exist for prescribers to fulfill before they can prescribe over-the-counter medication, including pain killers, to patients. The study will help identify gaps and examine opportunities to improve training and education of the public, patients and health care providers.
Both Manchin and Rockefeller said they are pleased with the Senate's actions on their amendments.
"I'm truly pleased that this amendment has passed and will make it much harder for anyone to abuse these prescription drugs," Manchin said in a statement after his amendment was passed. "I offered this legislation on behalf of the countless West Virginians whose lives have been cut short by drug abuse and the families who are picking up the pieces. I'm committed to working extremely hard across the aisle to see this most important legislation passed."
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