DOCTORS NOW PROTECTED IN PRESCRIBING NARCOTICS

New guidelines from pain specialists and the Drug Enforcement
Administration have lifted 'the aura of fear' from doctors who
prescribe narcotics to patients.

WASHINGTON -- Doctors cannot be arrested for properly
prescribing narcotic painkillers that are the best treatment for
millions of suffering patients, according to new guidelines from pain
specialists and the Drug Enforcement Administration.

The guidelines, written by leading pain specialists together with the
DEA, come because many doctors hesitate to prescribe the powerful
drugs, which are heavily regulated because they can be abused by addicts.

The new document for the first time spells out the exact steps doctors
should take to ensure their patients get appropriate medical care
without attracting DEA scrutiny. The idea is to get better pain
treatment for Americans.

''There are many misconceptions about DEA's role . . . that lead to
unwarranted fear that doctors who treat pain aggressively are singled
out,'' said Patricia Good, DEA's chief of prescription drug diversion.

The guidelines, distributed Wednesday to DEA agents and physicians
alike, should help eliminate ''this aura of fear,'' Good added.

The DEA regulates how doctors prescribe drugs that are controlled
substances, such as opioid painkillers -- morphine, codeine, fentanyl,
Oxycontin -- to ensure they're not diverted for illegal use.

The main message: ''Pain medicine is not to contribute to abuse, and
law enforcement is not to interfere in patient care,'' said David
Joranson, director of pain policy at the University of Wisconsin-
Madison Medical School, who helped write the guidelines.

Under-treatment of chronic, serious pain is considered a major medical
problem.

For example, painkillers known as opioids are considered standard of
care for serious pain from cancer, AIDS and among the terminally ill
- -- yet about 40 percent of those patients are under-treated, said Dr.
Russell Portenoy, pain chief at Beth Israel Medical Center and a
leading pain specialist.

The new guidelines spell out steps that ensure proper prescribing,
such as records showing the doctor performed a clear medical history
and physical examination to document the need for the painkiller.