(NY) AG calls for legislation to curb over-prescribing
AG calls for legislation to curb over-prescribing
State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is again pushing for legislation to create an online, real-time database to report and track the use of prescription narcotic drugs.
Last year, Schneiderman unveiled the Internet System for Tracking Over-Prescribing Act, or I-STOP. The legislation is designed to provide health care practitioners and pharmacists with centralized information to avoid over-prescribing, help shut down prescription drug trafficking, and identify and treat patients who seek to abuse prescription drugs.
On Wednesday, Schneiderman announced that the bill has bipartisan support. It's being sponsored by Assemblyman Michael Cusick, DStaten Island, and by Sen. Andrew J. Lanza, RStaten Island.
The AG also issued a report Wednesday that he said details the growing prescription drug abuse crisis in every corner of the state. Statewide, the number of prescriptions for all narcotic painkillers has increased by six million, from 16.6 million in 2007 to nearly 22.5 million in 2010. Contributing to the problem, Schneiderman said, are a lack of communication between practitioners, which significantly increases the likelihood of over-prescribing and dangerous drug interaction, and access to an ever-increasing supply of prescription narcotics, through legal or illegal means.
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