FDA Panel Votes to Recommend Against Approving Morphine-Oxycodone Opioid

By Join Together Staff | April 23, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed inGovernment & Prescription Drugs

An advisory panel of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voted Tuesday against approving a combination morphine-oxycodone painkiller, NPR reports. The drug, Moxduo, would be the first medication to combine both opioids in one capsule.

Moxduo’s manufacturer, QRxPharma, says the drug is intended to provide faster relief from moderate to severe pain, with fewer side effects than currently available opioids.

The vote against recommending approval of the drug was unanimous. The panel also voted unanimously that QRxPharma had not proved the drug is less likely to cause potentially life-threatening respiratory suppression, compared with taking oxycodone or morphine alone.

“I certainly wish that there was an opiate that could be counted on to decrease respiratory depression, and maybe one day there will be,” said panel member Gregory Terman of the University of Washington.

The panel questioned whether Moxduo offers any advantages over using oxycodone or morphine alone, the article notes. Panel members disagreed on whether studies conducted by the company showed Moxduo provides better pain relief, fewer side effects or lower risks of potentially fatal complications. Some experts said they were concerned the drug could be more easily abused than opioids such as Vicodin or Percocet.

The FDA is not required to follow its panels’ recommendations, but generally does so.

In a statement, QRxPharma Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer John Holaday said, “We are obviously disappointed in the outcome of today’s meeting, but remain confident in the advantages of Moxduo compared to morphine and oxycodone. This is a necessary therapy for patients with moderate to severe acute pain. We are committed to bringing to market safer therapies for pain, such as Moxduo, and preventing opioid abuse.”

Insurers Should Use Prescription Monitoring Databases to Reduce Overdoses: Report

By Join Together Staff | April 23, 2014 | 1 Comment | Filed in Healthcare,Insurance, Prescription Drugs & Prevention

Health insurers should use state prescription monitoring databases to reduce overdoses from abuse of opioids and other prescription drugs, according to a new report.

Sharing data between prescription monitoring databases and insurers would allow the companies to better detect inappropriate prescribing and dispensing, according to the report by the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) Center of Excellence at Brandeis University.

Most health insurance programs, including Medicare, Medicaid and workers’ compensation programs, only see data about prescriptions for which their particular plans have paid, MedicalXpress reports. PDMPs provide a patient’s complete outpatient prescription history for controlled substances. Allowing insurers to see all of their enrollees’ activity, including prescriptions paid for by other insurers, would allow them to spot patients who are “doctor shopping,” or who are acting in collusion with a street dealer, the report noted.

“At a time when the misuse and abuse of prescription opioids has reached epidemic levels, it’s important that third party payers be able to use states’ prescription monitoring data to make sure these drugs are prescribed appropriately,” Peter Kreiner, Principal Investigator of the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program Center of Excellence, said in a news release.

“Opioid abuse is the most urgent issue in workers’ compensation,” said Bruce Wood, Director of Workers’ Compensation with the American Insurance Association. “Giving workers’ compensation payers access to PDMP information would permit them to see if an injured worker is getting opioids from multiple sources.”

The report is the result of a meeting of more than 75 medical insurers, federal agency leaders and state PDMP administrators. It was discussed this week at the National Rx Drug Abuse Summit in Atlanta.

Those in Recovery Should Speak Out, Give Hope to Others: Drug Policy Official

By Join Together Staff | April 23, 2014 | 1 Comment | Filed in Addiction &Recovery

People in recovery from substance abuse should speak out and give hope to others in similar situations, according to the Acting Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Michael Botticelli, speaking at a forum in New Haven, noted 23 million Americans are recovery. Only about one in nine people with a substance use disorder receive treatment, he said. Botticelli said stigma and denial about substance abuse are obstacles to treatment, the Associated Press reports.

Botticelli is in long-term recovery from addiction, celebrating more than 24 years of sobriety.

“We know that one of the biggest reasons people don’t ask for help is shame and denial,” he said. “We need to break that silence. We’ve done it with other diseases and we can do it with substance use and we can do it with recovery.”

Music Festival Organizers Plan Greater Security to Prevent Drug-Related Deaths

By Join Together Staff | April 23, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed in Community Related, Drugs & Prevention

Organizers of the Electric Zoo music festival say they are planning tighter security this year, after two drug-related deaths occurred at last summer’s event.

The three-day festival, held in New York City over Labor Day weekend, will include drug-sniffing dogs, extensive pat-downs, and undercover officers who have a background in narcotics investigations, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Last year, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg canceled the last day of the festival after the deaths occurred.

The festival’s promoters, Mike Bindra and Laura DePalma, said they plan to hold the festival at the same location. They note they have not yet received a site permit from the Department of Parks and Recreation, but added that usually happens later in the year.

If the festival takes place, fans will be required to view an anti-drug public service announcement online in order for their festival wristbands to activate. The event will start later in the day, to reduce exposure to the sun. In addition, the organizers will scrutinize vendors more closely. The festival may place “amnesty bins” at the gates, so fans can drop off illicit substances before they are searched. These bins are used at music festivals in Europe. They were also used last year at a music festival outside Atlanta called TomorrowWorld, which attracted 50,000 fans.

“We don’t want to be finger-wagging,” Mr. Bindra said. “‘Just say no to drugs,’ we can all agree, has been ineffective in the past.”

Last year’s Electric Zoo festival included safety measures such as on-site emergency treatment centers, free bottled water, and periodic safety announcements. After the event, the promoters brought together an advisory board of doctors, security consultants and DJs to prevent future drug-related deaths.

APRIL 23 v 13 TWELVE STEPPING WITH POWER IN THE PROVERB

Do not withhold correction from a child,

For if you beat him with a rod, he will not die.

STEP 8 - Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all. 

Children are the key to our future. My daughter just turned eighteen and it took a lot of apologies and long talks to try and fix the damage I caused our relationship . There are times when I get caught up in the could , would , and should haves . My daughter deserved a lot more than what she got . I was so selfish I barely gave her the time of day . Addiction is the worse form of selfishness and it will steal all that is important to you . Growing up I did not get enough correction like the Proverb mentions and what you have is a dysfunctional adult .If you have kids and you are in active addiction I guarantee your kids are going to grow up just like you dysfunctional and out of control. Correcting your children when in active addiction is something you should not exercise because your out of control and your children are mirror image of your behavior . This is the main reason your children don't listen or respect you ,how can they when you are so out of control. The bottom line you gotta work the steps everyday , pray everyday tell your children you have made some mistakes explain to them we can work together we can all get past this terrible part of our lives and begin together to live life the way it is meant to be lived. 

Ephesians 6:4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

By:Joseph Dickerson

Approval of Powdered Alcohol Labels was a Mistake, Government Agency Says

By Join Together Staff | April 22, 2014 | Leave a comment | Filed in Alcohol,Government & Marketing And Media

The approval of labels for a powdered alcohol product called “Palcohol” was a mistake, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) said Monday. Palcohol gained widespread publicity in recent days after it was reported the government agency approved the labels.

A representative for the agency told the Associated Press the approvals for Palcohol’s labels were issued in error. Palcohol’s parent company, Lipsmark, said on its website, “We have been in touch with the TTB and there seemed to be a discrepancy on our fill level, how much powder is in the bag. There was a mutual agreement for us to surrender the labels. This doesn’t mean that Palcohol isn’t approved. It just means that these labels aren’t approved. We will re-submit labels. We don’t have an expected approval date as label approval can vary widely.”

The company says it plans to offer powdered alcohol in six varieties, including rum, vodka, Cosmopolitan, Mojito, Powderita and Lemon Drop. According to the company, a package of Palcohol weighs about an ounce and can fit into a pocket. It warns people not to snort the powder.

Palcohol, when used as directed, by adding five ounces of liquid to it, is equal to a standard mixed drink, according to the company. It will be sold anywhere liquor can be sold, and the buyer must be of legal drinking age to purchase it. “It will be available both in the United States and abroad and it can also be bought online,” the company states on its website.