Painkillers in the Military

Webb, US military concerned about painkiller abuse.
USA Today (3/17, Zoroya) reports, "The military is trying to curb the volume of narcotics given to troops as the number of prescriptions for painkillers and instances of drug abuse continue to soar, according to Pentagon data and recent congressional testimony." Last year, military physicians "wrote almost 3.8 million prescriptions for pain relief for servicemembers," an amount "more than four times the 866,773 doses handed out in 2001, according to data from the Pentagon health office." After noting that US Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA) "intends to look into the issue next week during a Senate subcommittee hearing that he will chair," USA Today adds, "Military officials and analysts say the increase in the use of narcotic pain medication reflects the continuing toll on...troops" in Iraq and Afghanistan.