10:53pm August 5, 2013

➸ Living with Pain: The DEA’s War on Pain Patients Reaches California | American News Report

fogwithwheels:

clatterbane:

I didn’t even know they were using this particular tactic, on the pharmacy side. Things have been really bad with extra DEA scrutiny in the part of VA where I grew up for a long time now. But, AFAICT, they were mostly scrutinizing doctors’ prescribing patterns so heavily that most were afraid to give people anything like adequate pain relief even for acute problems, if they wanted to keep their licenses. Even orthopedists and oncologists. That bad, and it’s probably only gotten worse over the five years since I last saw it in action. I’m very sorry to see this crap spreading more and harming even more people.

I remember first realizing how different it was in the US, and this was 5 years ago already, when I needed an OTC cold medicine before getting on the plane to fly home, and I couldn’t buy it because I wasn’t 18 at the time. My mom had to buy it for me, sign for, and fill out a form including our address and everything. I’ve been buying my own OTC meds for years by that point, both of us were so surprised by the protocol.

So I’m not surprised to see articles like this, but it makes me sad, because this is going to hurt a lot of people.

Wow, I wouldn’t have expected that. Was it something with pseudoephedrine decongestant that they are keeping behind the counter now? I understand that most states do require you to be over 18 and sign for it. Some are apparently even thumbprinting people. :/ A lot of pharmacies back home just stopped stocking it at all. And, of course, all the ridiculousness hurts people with colds and allergies more than it does the jerks running meth labs. (Which is the excuse there.)

Besides the health care system in general, the awfulness around trying to get treatment for pain was one of my huge reservations about moving back to the US when it looked like we coincidentally might be heading for California for my partner’s work. When I’m already dealing with a pain condition? Please no. I have lousy access to health care right now for other reasons, but at least they are not nearly as screwy about this kind of thing in the UK. I’ve been (barely) getting by on weak OTC codeine products, which really wouldn’t sit too well with the Prohibition mentality back home. :-| And if they actually take your problems seriously, they don’t hesitate to prescribe the same way.

I didn’t think to say before, but what’s particularly bad about the region of Virginia I’m from getting scapegoated so much is that there are also very high rates of disability and chronic health problems, for a variety of reasons mostly to do with inequality and a lot of people working physically demanding and dangerous jobs. Not only was there a legitimate reason for any higher prescribing rates to begin with (AFAICT, not very high anyway), there are a hell of a lot of people suffering from the assholery. :( Just so the government can make some kind of obscure point.