Arizona officials issue new guidance for battling opioid epidemic
Arizona could soon implement new rules and regulations for administering pain medication in an effort to combat the state's opioid epidemic.
(Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP, File)
(Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP, File)
PHOENIX — Arizona could soon implement new rules and regulations for administering pain medication in an effort to combat the state’s opioid epidemic.
A new report from the Arizona Department of Health Services detailed 12 recommendations that will “serve as a catalyst to reducing deaths from opioids in Arizona,” the report said.
Dr. Cara Christ, director of the Arizona Department of Health Services, said the recommendations range from “legislative solutions, to task forces of experts designed to address a specific item, or resources that we can implement to help provide services and additional resources in the community.”
The report was released Wednesday, nearly three months to the date when Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey issued a public health emergency declaration in response to data that found nearly two Arizonans die every day from opioids.
Numbers from the Arizona Department of Health Services released in June showed 790 people in the state died last year from an opioid overdose, a 16 percent increase from 2015.
As part of the declaration, the state department of health services was required to submit a report of the “accomplished activities and identify recommendations for combating the opioid epidemic in Arizona.”
Christ said some of the legislative proposals that the department is recommending is “limiting initial fills for those people that have not been on opioids before or at least within a recent time period to five days.”
“One of the recommendations is to submit a legislative package,” she said. “That addresses prescribing requirements, promoting safe prescribing and dispensing, decreasing the risk opioid use disorder and improving access to treatment.”
Some of the other recommendations include increased educational efforts for prescribers, using technology to prevent fraudulent prescriptions, limiting or tapering down dosages and regulating pain management clinics.
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Comments
3 Comments
I think this is right up there with having to show Identifcation for Sudafed..Its a reach at best and in reality the ship already sailed..Our despicable neighbors to the South, Mexico is pumping enough Heroine and Fentanyl at such low price points that it makes these moves a day late and a dollar short.
Why is it we never hear of drug labs being destroyed in Mexico? How about Poppy Fields being burned and or destroyed? Am I the only one wondering what our so called friends are doing down there to combat this? I think they are complicit and need to be taken to the wood shed by Trump on NAFTA..Build that wall, detain and deport at home.
Here's the exact phrasing by OSHA on their website:
https://www.osha.gov/doc/ou...
It's not as big of a deal as you might imagine. When "work" is being done you need to make sure that you take every precaution to prevent harm to your employees and the public in general. The standards really just demonstrate to employers the minimum guidelines you must meet to avoid legal action should an injury occur. That said, this predominantly effects construction sites, which are usually overseen by foremen that adhere to Federal OSHA standards as a CYA for the business, so it's really a moot point.
6 feet, are you serious? The way the feds want it, I would have to install air cushions around an 8 foot ladder every time I went to change my A/C filters. This is just another reason why the federal government, in general, is completely useless. Leave decision making of its citizens to the states. It's pretty obvious by now that local, county, and state do a better job running the government, over the feds. Feds shouls just stick solely to DOD and foreign affairs; don't even bother with the treasure or education because you've done quite enough already, thanks.