Legislative Action Comes in Memory of Ryan Creedon
Ryan Creedon overdosed on OxyContin on September 4, 2009, he was only 21. Creedon fell into the alarming national trend of abusing prescription pills.
Creedon’s mother, Kathy Creedon said that Ryan would run around Palm Desert California, from doctor’s office to doctor’s office to refill his Oxy prescriptions.
Creedon’s mother said, “It’s like watching your child slowly kill themselves. By the time he was 18 or 19, he had started using prescription medications like OxyContin.”
She also pointed out that it was an addiction that was not easily hidden.
“Every time he would get a job, he would go to work under the influence or he was stealing to support his habit,” said Creedon’s mother.
What bothered Creedon’s mother the most was how easy it was for Creedon to get his prescription medication. “He went from one end of this valley to the other, getting pills form one doctor, one hospital to another doctor.”
Mary Bono Mack and Palm Springs Legislation
The loss of her son has influenced a congressional bill that is aimed to make sure that these drugs are used properly and prescribed responsibly. Local Congresswomen Mary Bono Mack (CA-45) introduced The Ryan Creedon Act of 2011 (H.R. 2119) this week.
If the bill is approved it will require that those who prescribe medication like OxyContin, will have to go through federally approved training on the dangers of addiction and abuse.
Last year around 15,000 Americans died from an overdose related to legally controlled substances. A statistic showed that Americans consume 80% of the world’s opioid pain medication. Americans also consume 99% of the world’s hydrocodone.
The contributor to these statistics is that doctors will prescribe these pills to make profit. Many doctors lack the proper training to prescribe these medications and they do so recklessly.
Trying to Reign in “Out of Control” Florida
Two years ago Florida Governor Rick Scott put into effect a prescription monitoring program. In 2009 through 2010 almost 3,000 people died of personal legally prescribed medication in Florida. Florida has been known for being the biggest supplier of controlled substances.
The American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians (ASIPP) has also voiced and supported proposals by the federal government. The ASIPP would like to see prescription monitoring programs put into effect in all 50 states. They also would like to put restrictions on patients being able to cross state lines to receive more drugs.
Creedon’s mother hopes that this new bill will make doctors consider the consequences before writing prescriptions that can potentially be abused and take other lives.
Congresswomen Mary Bono Mack released this statement:
“Prescription drug abuse affects everyone in America, and the problem is only getting worse. Soon, drug overdose will be the leading cause of accidental death, and we need to take steps now to ensure that medical professionals who are devoted to helping and treating us are not unwittingly contributing to a much larger problem, This legislation takes the necessary steps to ensure that only doctors who are knowledgeable about the abuse and addiction risks of these powerful medications can prescribe them.”
If you know someone struggling with narcotic drug abuse, seek help immediatel.