States Cracking Down On Prescription Drug Abuse
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A new study from the drug enforcement agency says prescription drug abuse in Alabama is one of the worst in the country.
But Alabama Law Enforcement has been partnering with other agencies to combat the problem.
The DEA is working with agencies in four states, including Alabama, to crack down on prescription drug abuse.
Two doctors in Mobile were arrested Wednesday morning in connection with peddling pills.
After just a couple months, law enforcement is already seeing results.
“I think that today so far in operation pilluted there have been over 20 doctors and pharmacists arrested, over 100 participants arrested. It is a huge crackdown in at least four states, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas,” said U.S Attorney George Beck.
Alabama ranks number two in the nation for hydrocodone prescriptions, one of the most abused medications.
The next step after cracking down is helping people not get addicted in the first place.
“We have been for quite some time working on production of media, social media, driving it down to grass roots, to the communities with a website that will drive people to treatment in their areas,” Barry Matson with the Alabama Office of Prosecution Services.
But finding money to continue this project in Alabama could be a problem.
ALEA is looking at a 9 percent cut in the general fund budget, so this could be one of the operations on the chopping block.
“We have 40 full time agents that are assigned to narcotic investigation through ALEA. With this present budget that’s been proposed, we may have to cut that by at leas three fourths,” said Governor Bentley.
