THE OXYCONTIN EPIDEMIC

ACCORDING to a recent survey conducted by the US Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration, in 2002-2003 Massachusetts
ranked third among the 50 states for illicit drug dependence or abuse
and had the highest rate in New England among those age 26 and older.

To combat this epidemic, we are adding beds to rehab centers,
increasing funding for preventive education, and looking into new,
innovative programs like "sobriety high schools." However, more must
be done, and we should begin by banning OxyContin.In 1996, Purdue
Pharma introduced OxyContin, a drug that contains oxycodone, which is
twice as potent as morphine; its controlled-release mechanism allows
for a pill containing a massive dose to be slowly absorbed over a
period of 12 hours when taken correctly.

Purdue then began aggressively marketing OxyContin to physicians, many
of whom were not trained in pain management, billing the drug as an
effective treatment for moderate-to-severe chronic pain. As a result,
sales of OxyContin skyrocketed, reaching $1.3 billion in 2001, $1.5
billion in 2002, and $1.6 billion in 2003. By 2001, OxyContin had
become the most frequently prescribed brand-name narcotic for treating
moderate-to-severe chronic pain. At the same time, abuse of OxyContin
also soared.

People began chewing pills or crushing and snorting them, destroying
the controlled-release mechanism and achieving a quick and profoundly
addictive high. OxyContin as an abused drug knows no age, gender,
race, or socio-economic bounds.

Pretty soon it was everywhere -- in our schools, workplaces and
homes.

Purdue's response to this gathering threat was to give local law
enforcement $1.7 million in grants, or 0.0005 percent of its profits,
and their public education campaign features posters for schools that
make light of the problem with outrageous messages like "Scalding hot
bacon fat should not be used as after shave, and explosive diarrhea
caused by prescription drug abuse ruins pants." Evidently, Purdue
Pharma is unwilling to take this problem seriously. After reaping
billions from us, Purdue has left us with a monumental societal
problem: an epidemic of addiction.

Those who thought they could try OxyContin recreationally ended up
alienated, addicted, homeless, in jail, sick, or even dead. OxyContin
abuse is also a direct pathway to heroin abuse.

With pills costing $80 each on the street, an OxyContin addiction is
often too expensive to sustain.

However, at $4 per bag, heroin costs less than a pack of cigarettes.
Because today's heroin is significantly purer than it was 10 years
ago, it can be ingested, sniffed, smoked, or injected via a needle,
making it a versatile alternative. Heroin even comes in bags
decorated with cartoon characters such as Elmo or Batman -- packaging
focused blatantly at kids. No one would argue that OxyContin has no
benefit to society; it is an effective addition to the medicines
currently used to treat chronic pain. However, public policy is about
maintaining balance, and right now, the burden that OxyContin places
on families in the Commonwealth clearly outweighs its benefit. As the
Senate chair of the Mental Health and Substance Abuse committee, I am
focused on finding ways to stem the tide of opiate abuse.

Accordingly, I have filed legislation to ban OxyContin in
Massachusetts. This legislation provokes strong feelings from all sides.

But I believe that we have a responsibility to the children, families,
and communities of the Commonwealth to protect them from harm and
confront the substance abuse epidemic that is sweeping this state.

Both the profits and the horrors of OxyContin may soon be eclipsed,
however. Purdue Pharma has just received FDA approval for a new drug
called Palladone. Whereas OxyContin is a 12-hour time release drug,
Palladone is a morphine-based narcotic so potent that it is taken
only once every 24 hours.

It appears that Purdue Pharma is prepared to unleash yet another
epidemic.