PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE SENDS MORE PEOPLE TO THE HOSPITAL

The number of emergency room visits resulting from misuse or abuse of
prescription drugs has nearly doubled over the last five years,
according to new federal data, even as the number of visits because
of illicit drugs like cocaine and heroin has barely changed.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration found
there were about 1.2 million visits to emergency rooms involving
pharmaceutical drugs in 2009, compared with 627,000 in 2004. The
agency did not include visits due to adverse reactions to drugs taken
as prescribed.

Emergency room visits resulting from prescription drugs have exceeded
those related to illicit drugs for three consecutive years, said R.
Gil Kerlikowske, President Obama's top drug policy adviser.

"I would say that when you see a 98 percent increase," Mr.
Kerlikowske said, "and you think about the cost involved in lives and
families, not to mention dollars, it's pretty startling."

In 2010, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration reported that the number of people seeking treatment
for addiction to painkillers jumped 400 percent from 1998 to 2008.
And in a growing number of states, deaths from prescription drugs now
exceed those from motor vehicle accidents, with opiate painkillers
like Vicodin, Percocet and OxyContin playing a leading role.

In September, the Drug Enforcement Administration organized the first
national prescription drug take-back program, and thousands of people
dropped off old or unused drugs at designated locations around the
country. While the effort captured but a tiny fraction of the
addictive drugs in the nation's medicine cabinets, law enforcement
officials said it helped people understand how deadly such drugs can
be. Another collection day is being planned for April, Mr. Kerlikowske said.

"The most important thing that actually seems to be gaining a lot of
traction," he said, "is the recognition that the prescription drugs
sitting in your medicine cabinet can be dangerous. That's huge."