Consequences - New Audio for the Drug Truth Network

This is a segment I recorded for the Drug Truth Network. It's being broadcast on March 20, 2012, and is available here.

Consequences Erica Dinerman is project manager for Natick Together for Youth, a substance abuse prevention project of Natick, MA Public Schools. The MetroWest Daily News on March 15 published a letter from her office urging voters to oppose a medical marijuana legalization initiative which has not yet made it to the November 2012 general election ballot. Ms. Dinerman began her letter by noting that her program was the recipient of a new Drug Free Communities Grant of $625,000 over a five-year period. That's 125,000 of our tax dollars each year for the next five years. Ms. Dinerman made clear that the focus of those tax dollars in the first year was opposing a medical marijuana initiative in Massachusetts. According to ONDCP, state and local agencies – like Natick Public Schools – and their officers and employees – like Ms. Dinerman - must abide by the same Hatch Act restrictions against political involvement which federal employees must obey. Unfortunately, the Hatch Act does not restrict involvement in initiative and referenda campaigns, in fact they are specifically exempted. So it's legal. The Hatch Act concern is merely a technicality, however. Let's get to the real meat of the story. According to ONDCP, Drug Free Community grants are for the purpose of preventing youth substance use. On her website, Ms. Dinerman asserts that medical marijuana laws mean increased youth use. It's not true, though young people and adults are more likely to admit using marijuana once penalties are reduced because they feel less afraid of admitting the truth, but nuances seem lost on Ms. Dinerman. To Ms. Dinerman, concerns like alcohol, tobacco, inhalants, and prescription drugs – the youth drug use concerns which most schools face – seem to pale in significance compared with adult use of medical marijuana by physician-authorized patients. Is this what the parents in the Natick Public School system consider their biggest threat? It's certainly not what real prevention professionals would call effective use of very limited federal funds. Some people might even call it sleazy and unethical. At the end of the day the ones who will suffer most are the students in Natick Public School system. Ms. Dinerman does seem to be concerned with consequences. She used the word four times in her 290 word letter. One can only hope Ms. Dinerman will learn the consequences for misusing limited federal resources in this way – if not in real court, then at least in the court of public opinion. For the Drug Truth Network, this is Doug McVay, Common Sense for Drug Policy.

Audio file posted for If someone you love can't sleep, drug 'em

As promised below (If someone you love can't sleep, drug 'em) here's a link to the audio file of an item I recently put together for the Drug Truth Network about veterans, PTSD, and pain meds. It's being used in the 4:20 news segment on March 12.

A War on Pain Relief

This is an audio piece I did for the 4:20 News to be broadcast on Sunday, March 11, via the Drug Truth Network.

03/11/12 Doug McVay | Drug Truth Network

Here's a transcript:

Throwing out the baby with the bath water

US Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske testified before a House Subcommittee on February 29. The Czar appeared on a panel testifying alongside attorneys general from Florida and Kentucky, all of them urging tougher action against prescription drug misuse and abuse. The Czar declared that problems of prescription drug abuse had grown to a national crisis which until recently had not been quote “on the radar screen” end quote.

Oh really?

A federal crackdown on pain management specialists and pain patients has gone on since at least 2001, when hysteria over OxyContin was making headlines across the country. Much of what was reported was hype, yet it resulted in a lot of pain – literally – for many people.

In December 2007, Drug Czar John Walters from the White House press room announced the release of new Monitoring the Future data showing that prescription drug misuse and abuse among young people was still on the increase.

In 2011, the DEA held its 20^th annual conference on pharmaceutical and chemical diversion. Two Zero, this year will be the 21^st.

Why does this matter? According to the CDC's report Health United States 2010, 30 percent of adults over 18 surveyed reported suffering joint pain within the past 30 days. Most disturbingly according to the CDC, quote “even for patients enrolled in a hospice care program that has the stated purpose of making the dying process more comfortable, one-third of decedents had pain near the time of death.” end quote.

While there is no question that diversion does occur, and that opioids are powerful and potentially addictive, there is also no question that many Americans suffer with pain. The chilling effect of the crackdown on pain relief means that many will continue to needlessly suffer. Let's not throw the baby out with the bath water. It's time to flip the script.

For the Drug Truth Network, this is Doug McVay, Common Sense for Drug Policy.

If someone you love can't sleep, drug 'em

(This is a piece I just did for the Drug Truth Network. I'll post a link to the audio file when it's available.)
An old friend once wrote, If someone you love can't sleep, drug them.

Veterans Administration hospitals seem to be following his advice, and not in a good way. At least that seems to be the conclusion of researchers who looked into treatment of American veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

According to a report in the March 7, 2012 edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association, veterans diagnosed with a pain condition who were also diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder were nearly three times as likely to receive opiate pain medicines as those with a pain diagnosis who did not have a diagnosis of a mental health disorder. These vets with both PTSD and pain diagnoses were 1.5 times as likely to be prescribed opiate pain meds as vets diagnosed with both pain and a mental health disorder other than PTSD.

Further, veterans with PTSD and pain were more likely to receive higher-dose opioids, to receive two or more opioids concurrently, to receive sedative hypnotics concurrently, and to obtain early opioid refills. These patients also faced an increased risk of quote “adverse clinical outcomes” end quote.

We also know that vets with PTSD are already at high risk for substance abuse.

The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies are researching the effectiveness of the drug ecstasy, otherwise known as MDMA, in treating PTSD among vets. Their efforts are making progress, slowly yet surely. No matter how we may feel about the wars our politicians wage, we all owe it to our veterans to help them recover from their wounds and their experiences and to provide them effective therapy, rather than just tranquilizing them and keeping them out of the way.

For the Drug Truth Network, this is Doug McVay with Common Sense for Drug Policy.