PRESCRIPTION FOR DEATH

Eastern Kentucky has been declared the painkiller capital of the nation. As
if that weren't bad enough, Pike County itself was named number three on
the list of places receiving the most narcotics per capita from 1998 to 2001.

These figures were part of an in-depth investigation published Sunday by
the Lexington Herald-Leader into the prescription pill crisis sweeping this
region.

According to the data, compiled from federal Drug Enforcement
Administration records, nearly a ton of narcotics were shipped into
mountain counties during the four-year period. Narcotics such as OxyContin
and Vicodin flood our cities and towns at much higher rates than Los
Angeles, Detroit and Miami.

The information shows that besides OxyContin, people in the mountains
prefer drugs such as Lorcet, Lortab and Vicodin, which are made from
hydrocodone, an opium derivative. OxyContin made headlines in 2000 after
dozens in the area overdosed on the pill, which was intended for the relief
of long-term, moderate to severe pain.

The reason many choose the hydrocodone pills is because they are less
regulated than OxyContin and doctors have fewer restrictions on prescribing
them.

All this addiction has resulted in overstuffed drug rehabilitation centers,
jammed circuit court dockets and even a revolution in the way law
enforcement agencies handle their jobs.

Over the past few years, law enforcement agencies have reported a sharp
increase in "drugged" drivers, taking the place of the traditional drunken
drivers. Old-fashioned Breathalyzer tests will no longer cut it, and police
are having to blood test just about everyone they pull over. This, in turn,
has led to a backlog of about 6,000 drug-identification cases at the
Kentucky State Police lab in Frankfort. Because of the backlog, drug
offenders are getting off the hook.

And what's worse, one state police captain said that for every prescription
drug dealer taken off the streets, four stand ready to replace him.

Come on, people, this is ridiculous.

Law enforcement agencies are doing everything they can. The burden now
falls on you, the people of this county, to do something about this
problem, this crisis.

If you know someone who is hooked on prescription drugs, turn them in. If
you know someone selling pills, turn them in. If you see someone buying
pills, turn them in. If you have a legitimate reason to have pills, lock
them up.

There's no money now for a drug rehabilitation center in Pike County. Even
when we get it, it would take time to get it up and running. That means it
is up to you - the mothers, brothers, children and cousins of addicts - to
help them.

If nothing is done, Pike County could become number one on the list. That's
not a distinction we need.