March 9, 2011                                                                                  

COLUMBUS-State Representative Al Landis (R-Dover) today announced that
legislation to address prescription drug abuse and strengthen oversight measures
passed from the Ohio House of Representatives by a vote of 97-0. When enacted,
it will combat the growing prevalence of prescription drug abuse and fatalities
within the state of Ohio.

House Bill 93 will enhance the current Ohio Automated Rx Review System
(OARRS)-which was established in 2006 to assist health care professionals in
identifying drug-seeking behaviors-to provide additional oversight. It will also
limit prescribers’ ability to personally furnish certain controlled substances;
enact Medicaid reforms to improve consumer education and allow for better care
coordination; improve licensing and law enforcement for pain-management clinics;
and develop a statewide prescription drug “take-back” program.

“Prescription drug overdoses or abuse kills, on average, four Ohioans each day,”
said Landis. “That is an incredible number of loses that may have been
prevented. The bill will target the “pill mills” that operate within our state.
On top of the deaths is the abuse that is a result of the prescription drug
addictions such as putting drugs ahead of taking care of their children, and
even elder abuse. It will help assure that these drugs are taken off of our
streets and disposed of properly.”

Opiates alone were responsible for nearly 40 percent of Ohio’s approximately
1,400 overdose deaths in 2009, according to the Ohio Department of Alcohol and
Drug Addiction Services. From 2003 to 2008, opiate deaths in Ohio more than
doubled in a jump from 399 to 915 fatalities, with an average of four Ohioans
dying each day as a result of overdoses.

In Ohio, unintentional drug overdoses surpassed motor vehicle crashes and
suicide as the leading cause of injury death in Ohio. It has also been reported
that the highest rates in the state for these deaths are in southern Ohio, where
seven of the 10 counties with the highest death rates are located.

House Bill 93 will now move to the Ohio Senate for further consideration and
debate.