What a nightmare....All in the name of opiod addiction prevention.... what a nightmare for NJ home health nurses for patients with new acute pain due to fracture, new cancer DX, post surgery, Sickle cell crisis..... will just drive up ER business. Fifteen day limit would be more reasonable. Some PCP in Philly/NJ area have 30+ days before patient can get appointment post hospitalization! Karen
TRENTON - Gov. Christie wants to tackle opioid addiction by limiting the number of pills physicians can initially prescribe - an idea experts say could reduce excess supply but may cause some pain patients to go days without medication.
Christie, a Republican serving the last year of his second term, last week ordered new rules that would limit doctors to writing initial prescriptions for five days' worth of opioid-based medications, down from 30.
The regulation would apply to patients with acute pain, such as a broken wrist, not those with chronic pain. Following a consultation, either by phone or in person, doctors could prescribe more opioids, such as oxycodone and fentanyl, to acute-care patients....
...Half of those who abuse the drugs report getting them from a friend or relative, according to 2013-14 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.
"Many prescriptions may be written for clinically appropriate purposes and still inadvertently contribute to the epidemic because they go unused and ultimately are given or sold to friends or family members," he said
