OXYCONTIN MANUFACTURER HELPS FIGHT PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE

By Katie Scarvey, Salisbury Post Aaron Graham wears a suit these days and is
comfortable in company boardrooms, but he still remembers the old days when
he was living in Guadalajara, Mexico, helping Colombian drug smugglers.

Well, pretending to help them, anyway. Graham worked for the United States
government as an undercover narcotics agent, giving drug smugglers
logistical help with landing strips and radio communications. Later, he
worked for the government to combat prescription drug fraud and diversion
north of the border.

Now, Graham uses his expertise in the private sector. Last August, in the
wake of negative publicity about OxyContin, its best-selling narcotic,
Purdue Pharma hired Graham to head up its corporate security division. As
part of his job, Graham works with law enforcement and medical professionals
to fight the problem of prescription drug diversion.

Purdue Pharma is dedicated to ensuring that OxyContin is used in the proper
way by people who need it for pain relief, Graham says. The company never
anticipated that people would crush and snort the drug, he says. Once they
realized that diversion and abuse had become a problem, the company became
actively involved in taking the criminal element out of the equation, Graham
says.

And that's where his experience comes into play.

"As a narcotics agent, I knew that we never had enough money to make buys or
pay informants," he says.

"I knew that if I could put additional resources in the hands of the guys on
the street, they could be more successful."

He's not sure of the exact figure, but Purdue Pharma has spent probably a
million dollars this past year, not counting salaries, on fighting
prescription drug abuse.

"We're getting great results," says Graham, adding that law enforcement
officers have been very appreciative of Purdue Pharma's support.

One officer who appreciates Purdue Pharma's involvement is Ernest Kirchin,
who has worked with the vice and narcotics unit of the Charlotte Mecklenburg
Police Department since 1994. He's one of two full-time investigators
dealing with pharmaceutical diversion in the Charlotte area.

"Purdue Pharma has stepped forward and said 'If there is a problem, we want
to do something about it,' " Kirchin says.

"I have never heard of a pharmaceutical company that manufactures
hydrocodone (the drug in Lortab, Lorcet and Vicadin) ask if they can assist
us the way that Purdue has," says Kirchin, who adds that hydrocodone
diversion is a bigger problem in the Charlotte area than oxycodone
diversion.

Besides giving money to law enforcement, Purdue Pharma provides training
around the country to teach doctors and pharmacists how to recognize a
doctor shopper or a drug seeker, he says.

Purdue Pharma also developed and funded RxPATROL, an initiative started
several months ago to help improve pharmacy security and identify pharmacy
robbers.

RxPATROL allows pharmacy personnel to submit a comprehensive theft report to
a secure Internet Web site. RxPATROL will analyze information gained from
the Web site and disseminate the information to law enforcement agencies.
Kirchin says that the Web site will be valuable to law enforcement officers
once the data starts rolling in.

Purdue Pharma has also invested millions in the development of an
abuse-resistant formulation of OxyContin. Although that goal hasn't been met
yet, the company is committed to making it happen, Graham says.

While Graham wants to help Purdue Pharma do all it can to prevent
prescription drug abuse, people are ultimately accountable for their own
actions, he believes.

"People have abused prescription drugs for years. OxyContin is just the drug
du jour."