One person in Roanoke Rapids made enough to pay $360 worth of bills from it. Another person in Roanoke Rapids committed suicide from it.
Then last year, the biggest diversion ever recorded in the state was right here, when painkillers were taken from a local pharmacy for sale on the street.
These are just a few examples of how the illegal use of prescription medication is overwhelming law enforcement, not only here, but across the country, said Tommy Hathaway, a narcotics agent with the Roanoke Rapids Police Department.
Hathaway and fellow Narcotics Agent Jamie Hardy were outside Wal-Mart today, along with an agent from the Drug Enforcement Administration, to collected unwanted and expired prescription drugs so they could be properly disposed.
There were few takers on the don’t ask, don’t tell National Pill Turn In Day.
“I’m a little disappointed in the community’s lack of concern with prescription diversion,” Hathaway said.
He said one person the department has investigated uses sales of prescription medication as part of their budget. “That covers cable, water and lights.”
Hathaway said prescription drug diversion, “Is the number one problem I have right now.”
There have been reports of students trading Ritalin for other drugs. While he has not heard of any Skittle parties — parties where drugs stolen from medicine cabinets are placed in a bowl and randomly taken to try to get high — that’s not to say they are not occurring. “They’re usually already over by the time we hear about it.”
The danger in mixing these drugs, Hathaway said, is simple. “The danger of misusing and abusing is death.”
While many people have their prescriptions stolen, many find doctors who ask few questions, the DEA agent said.
Working undercover, the DEA agent recalled a case where he went to a doctor claiming he fell from a ladder and injured his shoulder. He was prescribed Vicodin. For the return visit he told the doctor his shoulder was better but needed more pills. The same thing happened on the third visit and four more times, the agent said. “He never did a blood test, no MRI. It was cash only.”
One of the problems, said the agent, like some police and lawyers, doctors protect their own. “There are no pain management standards set by the American Medical Association.”
Mike Troster, a regional agent in charge of the Raleigh DEA office, told rrspin.com prescription drug diversion has become a huge problem and overdoses are twice as likely from that than cocaine and heroin combined.
One of the problems is people who are prescribed these drugs for problems are administered proper dosages based on medical factors, Troster said. “Your body can tolerate it a lot more than when someone is abusing it.”
Troster said he has seen an increase in prescription drug diversion within the last 10 years. “It’s one of those things we’ve noticed over time.”
