DEA hosts industry association conference as part of continued collaboration on prescription drug abuse
WASHINGTON - DEA Assistant Administrator, Diversion Control Division John Martin recently hosted a collaborative conference in Washington, D.C. with industry leaders representing the prescription drug supply chain in America. The purpose of their dialogue was to discuss ways to minimize pharmaceutical diversion while maintaining legitimate commerce and patient access.
“DEA and those in the drug supply chain must consistently work on collaborative measures in our ongoing efforts to combat prescription drug misuse and find solutions to our nation’s opioid epidemic,” Assistant Administrator Martin said. “We view DEA registrants as partners in this effort, whether it’s pharmaceutical manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, pharmacies, doctors, or nurse practitioners. DEA’s role is always finding the right balance between providing patients with important medication, while lowering drug diversion, addiction, crime, and overdoses which we have become all too familiar with. We all share a role in the fight against prescription drug misuse and trafficking and we must continue these efforts together. The more we can communicate with our registrant partners, the better.”
As part of this conference, DEA presented attendees with information on federal laws and regulations affecting their industry, and provided a forum to ask questions and share their perspectives about regulatory requirements on current issues. Over the past several years, DEA has redoubled its efforts to better communicate with its registrant population nationwide. These efforts include regular Practitioner Diversion Awareness Conferences around the country, DEA 360 events, semi-annual National Prescription Drug Take-Back days, and other outreach efforts spearheaded by individual DEA field divisions.
More than 70,000 Americans lost their lives to drug overdose last year, and many of them were opioid-related—heroin, fentanyl, fentanyl analogues, and potent prescription medications such as Oxycodone.
