Drug Abuse Detection System

Massachusetts regulators approve expanded prescription drug abuse system.
The Boston Globe (8/12, A1, Smith) reports on its front page that Massachusetts regulators approved a new prescription drug monitoring system Wednesday to help "stop 'doctor shopping' by addicted patients." The new system "will allow physicians and pharmacists to review an online database showing previous prescriptions patients had filled for powerful painkillers such as OxyContin." Massachusetts has had a monitoring system since 1992, but it is limited and "health providers don't have direct access to its data." The new system will update data weekly "instead of monthly," and it will include data on "a much broader roster of medications that includes pain relievers such as Vicodin and Darvon, as well as steroids." The state expects to save "$2 million a year by spotting abusers" in its insurance program.