PANEL TO AIR PLAN TO CURB OXYCONTIN

A state panel studying OxyContin abuse in Maine says the state should
increase prevention efforts, expand treatment opportunities and make it
harder for people to obtain the prescription painkiller illegally.

The Substance Abuse Services Commission, which advises state leaders on
substance abuse policy, will announce the findings of a six-month study at
a State House press conference today. They hope the proposals will help
address an epidemic of drug use that has led to robberies, assaults,
burglary, accidental deaths and even economic development problems in
Washington County. Hundreds of people statewide have become addicted to the
powerful narcotic.

"OxyContin is a dragon we are going to have to deal with," said Margaret
Jones, commission chairwoman and director of prevention services for the
substance abuse treatment organization Day One. "It's highly addictive, and
we're beginning to see young people going from OxyContin to heroin in a
very short period of time."

OxyContin is the brand name of a powerful time-release painkiller that can
be obtained legitimately with a doctor's prescription. Recreational users
and those addicted to opiates such as heroin can remove the medicine's
time-release buffer, then inject or snort it for a surge of euphoria and to
stave off withdrawal symptoms.

Jones said the commission's report deals specifically with the drug's misuse.

"I don't condemn this drug. The appropriate use of this has been a real
lifesaver," she said. "What we have to be aware of is how we prevent it
from getting into the wrong hands."

Maine's problem with OxyContin abuse, like that in some other rural states,
has drawn national attention. The problem first became acute in eastern
Maine about three years ago when Washington County treatment workers and
police were confronting a growing number of people addicted to the
painkillers who were resorting to crime to satisfy the habit.

The number of people being treated for addiction to prescription
painkillers and other opiates grew rapidly in Maine from 1995 to 2001. So
did the number of crimes related to the problem, which is one reason the
commission did the in-depth study.

In addition, the state Medical Examiner's Office reported that of 54
accidental overdose deaths in 2000, 10 of the victims had oxycodone, the
active ingredient in OxyContin, in their systems.

"It's a very big deal primarily because of the growth of the problem and
because most of the state, with the exception of southern Maine, has not
really had any experience at all with opiate addiction and it really took a
lot of people by surprise," said Kimberly Johnson, director of the state's
Office of Substance Abuse.

The commission, which is comprised of treatment professionals and
legislators, conducted focus groups with recovering addicts, family
members, police chiefs and drug agents.

The commission found that young people typically get access to the drug
initially through friends whose parents have it. They fail to recognize the
drug's addictive qualities and quickly succumb to more frequent use.

The report recommends several strategies for combatting the problem, its
authors say.

Educators, parents and others need to include the drug in prevention
efforts. The state needs to focus additional resources on law enforcement
efforts to fight diversion of prescription drugs. And the Office of
Substance Abuse needs to continue studying the problem closely, including
incorporating OxyContin use in the surveys it gives to students.

Another recommendation is a call for expanding treatment programs, which
would be costly.

"When you make up your mind you're going to go into treatment, you need to
be able to do it then, because your mind changes really quick when you're
in withdrawal," Johnson said. "If you're on the waiting list a week or two
or for one or two months, by the time you're off the waiting list you've
gone back to using."

Also, if people have to drive two hours to attend treatment, which has been
the case in eastern parts of the state, they are likely to abandon the
program, she said.

The report also recommends establishing an electronic prescription-
monitoring system so pharmacists can confirm a patient's prescription. One
tactic the drug's abusers will use is to alter a prescription, copy it for
use at multiple pharmacies, or fabricate a prescription on a stolen form.

An electronic prescription system, which has been used effectively in other
states, could allow doctors to submit prescriptions electronically, Jones
said. Such a system was proposed in the Legislature last year, but the bill
was defeated after opponents raised concerns about medical privacy. The
bill has been resubmitted this year.

Johnson suspects legislators are becoming increasingly receptive to
legislation aimed at curbing the drug's abuse.

"My sense is, recently there has been a real concern and a growing
knowledge among the legislators that substance abuse, whether opiates or
alcohol or marijuana, is linked to all the other social or criminal issues
they deal with," Johnson said.