LIMBAUGH ADMITS PAIN-KILLER ADDICTION

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh announced
during his radio show Friday that he is addicted to pain-killers and is
checking into a rehab program.

"You know I have always tried to be honest with you and open about my
life," Limbaugh said during a stunning admission aired nationwide. "So I
need to tell you today that part of what you have heard and read is
correct. I am addicted to prescription pain medication.

"Immediately following this broadcast, I am checking myself into a
treatment center for the next 30 days to once and for all break the hold
this highly addictive medication has on me," he added.

'SEND THEM UP THE RIVER'

Rush Limbaugh made the following comments during a segment on drug use
during his show on Oct. 5, 1995. They were made in reference to a report
citing the disproportionate charging, conviction and jailing of blacks on
drug charges.

"Let's all admit something: There's nothing good about drug use. We know
it. It destroys individuals. It destroys families. Drug use destroys
societies. Drug use, some might say, is destroying this country. And we
have laws against selling drugs, pushing drugs, using drugs, importing
drugs. And the laws are good because we know what happens to people in
societies and neighborhoods which become consumed by them. And so if people
are violating the law by doing drugs, they ought to be accused and they
ought to be convicted and they ought to be sent up."

"...What this says to me is that too many whites are getting away with drug
use, too many whites are getting away with drug sales, too many whites are
getting away with trafficking in this stuff. The answer to this disparity
is not to start letting people out of jail because we're not putting others
in jail who are breaking the law. The answer is to go out and find the ones
who are getting away with it, convict them and send them up the river, too.
That's how you deal with this, ladies and gentlemen."

Attempts to reach Limbaugh by phone, e-mail, fax and at his Florida home
were unsuccessful Friday.

Limbaugh gave up his job as an ESPN sports analyst Oct. 1, three days after
saying on the sports network's "Sunday NFL Countdown" that Philadelphia
Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb was overrated because the media wanted to
see a black quarterback succeed.

Reports of possible drug abuse surfaced at about the same time, first in
the National Enquirer. The tabloid had interviewed Wilma Cline, who said
she became Limbaugh's drug connection after working as his maid. She said
Limbaugh had abused OxyContin and other pain-killers.

Law enforcement sources confirmed that Limbaugh was being investigated by
the Palm Beach County, Fla., state attorney's office.

"At the present time, the authorities are conducting an investigation, and
I have been asked to limit my public comments until this investigation is
complete," Limbaugh said.

Mike Edmondson, a spokesman for the Palm Beach County state attorney's
office, said Friday his office could neither confirm nor deny that an
investigation was under way. Limbaugh's attorney, Roy Black, did not
respond to a message seeking comment.

Limbaugh said he started taking pain-killers "some years ago" after a
doctor prescribed them following spinal surgery. His back pain stemming
from the surgery persisted, so Limbaugh said he started taking pills.

"Over the past several years, I have tried to break my dependence on pain
pills and, in fact, twice checked myself in to medical facilities in an
attempt to do so. I have recently agreed with my physician about the next
steps."

A spokesman for Premiere Radio Networks, which syndicates the "Rush
Limbaugh Show," declined to elaborate on Limbaugh's previous treatment.

OxyContin is a narcotic pain-killer that is prescribed for victims of
moderate to severe chronic pain resulting from such problems as arthritis,
back trouble and cancer.

Limbaugh reported two years ago that he had lost most of his hearing
because of an autoimmune inner-ear disease. An electronic device was placed
in his skull to restore his hearing.

Research has found that abuse of opiate-based pain-killers like OxyContin
can lead to profound hearing loss caused by damage to the inner ear, said
Dr. Gail Ishiyama, an assistant professor at the UCLA department of
neurology. She could not confirm that was Limbaugh's case without access to
his medical history. AP