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prescription drug abuse

Prescription Drug Crime Database Map (photo credit: Peter Haskell / WCBS 880)

New Database To Help Crack Down On Prescription Drug-Related Crime In N.Y.

Sen. Charles Schumer, who pushed the Drug Enforcement Administration for its creation, called it the first of its kind in the country.

2013/02/15

Ambien Bottle (Photo by Tim Boyle/Getty Images)

FDA Requires Lower Doses For Ambien, Other Sleep Medications

The Food and Drug Administration is requiring makers of Ambien and similar sleeping pills to lower the dosage of their drugs, based on studies suggesting patients face a higher risk of injury due to morning drowsiness.

2013/01/10

Prescription painkillers (file/credit: CBS 2)

New Awareness Campaign Launches To Fight Teen Prescription Drug Abuse

According to the The Partnership at Drugfree.org, one in six teens has used prescription painkillers to get high and nearly two-thirds of teens who misuse prescription medication get the pills from family members and friends.

2012/09/25

Dr. Jefferey Reynolds, director of the Long Island Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence. (credit: CBS 2)

L.I. Officials Dealing With ‘Perfect Storm’ Of Teen Substance Abuse

Dr. Jeffrey Reynolds, director of the Long Island Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, is now seeing anguish and heartbreak after numbers keep increasing and resources continue to dwindle.

2012/08/03

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman promotes the I-STOP program - Staten Island, NY - Jul 16, 2012 (credit: Alex Silverman / WCBS 880)

A.G. Schneiderman Continues Lauding I-STOP Program

Soon, when you got to a doctor in New York, he or she will be able to see all of the prescriptions you’ve had for painkillers.

2012/07/16

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman (file / credit: AG's Office)

Schneiderman Lauds Passage Of I-STOP Prescription History Check Program

Amid a recent trend of abuse and violence involving prescription painkillers, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman Wednesday lauded a new measure aimed at stemming the problem.

2012/06/27

WCBS 880 Special Series: Bad Medicine – Part 12 – NYS Health Dept. Gets Retooled For Prescription Drug Abuse

Terry O’Leary, the new head of the New York State Health Department’s Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement, has his work cut out for him, retooling an agency to deal with the overprescribing of prescription painkillers.

2012/05/25

Suffolk County Grand Jury Addresses Prescription Painkiller Abuse

The panel has offered several solutions and recommendations to address the epidemic after hearing testimony from 38 witnesses and considering 123 exhibits.

2012/05/24

WCBS 880 Special Series: Bad Medicine – Part 11 – Undoing The Damage Of The Painkiller Push

Major pharmaceutical companies saw dollar signs when they first began to push doctors to freely prescribe powerful opiate-based painkillers for just about anything, WCBS 880′s Irene Cornell reported. Now there is a major public health crisis.

2012/05/24

WCBS 880 Special Series: Bad Medicine – Part 10 – Mother Distrusts Doctors After Son’s Overdose Death

Maria Basmas just experienced her first Mother’s Day without her son Christopher. He died in October after overdosing on prescription painkillers. He was only 29-years-old.

2012/05/23

WCBS 880 Special Series: Bad Medicine – Part 9 – Recovering Painkiller Addict Blames Doctors For Epidemic

Recovering painkiller addict Michel Green told WCBS 880′s Irene Cornell he was shocked when, after experiencing knee pain, a doctor offered him another addictive painkiller.

2012/05/22

WCBS 880 Special Series: Bad Medicine – Part 8 – Dr. Battles Pharmaceutical Co.’s In Fight Against Overprescription

“The sales for these medications continue to skyrocket, to a point at which the U.S. is now consuming more than 80 percent of the entire world’s opioid supply,” Dr. Andrew Kolodny told WCBS 880′s Irene Cornell.

2012/05/21

WCBS 880 Special Series: Bad Medicine – Part 7 – Doctors Battle Overprescription

It usually takes a celebrity death to grab the headlines, but there have been 100,000 fatal overdoses in this country in the past 10 years because to narcotic painkillers, WCBS 880′s Irene Cornell reported.

2012/05/20

New York City Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan (credit: Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor)

WCBS 880 Special Series: Bad Medicine – Part 6 – Law Enforcement’s New Focus On Painkiller-Related Violence

Narcotic painkillers and the doctors who prescribe them illegally have become a new focus for law enforcement, WCBS 880′s Irene Cornell reported.

2012/05/19

Chris Herren in Beverly Hills, CA - Jul 27, 2011 (credit: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)

WCBS 880 Special Series: Bad Medicine – Part 4 – Ex-NBA Star, Drug Addict Now On Mission

He lost his dream job with the Boston Celtics and nearly lost his life to Oxycontin and heroin, but now he’s a man on a mission, traveling the country telling his powerful story to vulnerable kids, WCBS 880′s Irene Cornell reported.

2012/05/17

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