[pepsionice]

The abuse of Vicodin or OxyContin or Percocet is legendary. No one in the medical industry cares...most political folks don’t care....and public doesn’t care. As for Bloomberg’s effort? Well...folks will just go and make reservations every three days to get their prescription...so doctors will make another ten to twenty percent on profit per year.

[Lazamataz]

Some of the most common and most powerful prescription painkillers on the market will be restricted sharply in the emergency rooms at New York City’s 11 public hospitals, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said Thursday in an effort to crack down on what he called a citywide and national epidemic of prescription drug abuse.

Tinhorn f***ing dictator. Better they should writhe in pain, right? Bloomberg, you are Obama/Mao writ small.

[LukeL]

A doctor should be able to decide what is best for his patient and if that be morhpine or oxcycodone, or even fentanyl then so be it. If anything the hosptials need to have narcotic review boards and punish doctors who overprescribe or overoder medication.

[taildragger]

Financial-Media Guru, Nutritionist, Physician, Constitutional Scholar, in the arena of the 2nd Admendment, gee how did he ever have time for girls in College... ( sarcasm off )...

I am so sick of this know-it-all petty Dictator, perhaps he can take Hugo's place, lets give him a Country, and give us back NY.

[silverleaf]

Bloomie will never sit in an ER waiting area for 3 hours waiting for Xrays, with multiple fractures, and without powerful pain relief, as did my spouse 3 weeks ago

[MrBambaLaMamba]

Outlaw medicine.
Stop interfering with the will of Allah!

[Gay State Conservative]

Having worked for *many* years in a big city ER (not NYC) I've seen "drug seeking behavior" on a regular basis.The physicians and nurses were all tuned into it,particularly with the "regulars" (all big city ER's have regular customers).Our hospital's legal department even went to the point of informing one of our regulars...an addict with genuine health issues..that he was always welcome to seek care at our facility but he would no longer receive narcotic analgesics in the ER.We never saw him again.

A proclamation like this is bound to result in serious trouble...legal trouble,particularly...for the hospitals involved.

[exDemMom]

I guess it all depends on how the restrictions are enacted. Since faking a medical crisis and going to the ER is a common way for addicts to get their fixes, a policy that manages to address that while still giving appropriate care to actual patients is a good measure to take.

However, I have no idea how Bloomberg plans to implement this, and he has a history of being a petty dictator. So, for all I know, this could turn out to be a burden for the hospitals and end up harming patients.

As an aside, I went to the ER for chest pains (I still don’t know the cause). The first thing I told the staff was “No narcotics!”

[Notary Sojac]

(1) - he is doing this in the public hospitals where the mayor is the boss. Not acting outside his authority.

(2) - I agree with the posters up-thread who think this is not an inappropriate response to the tsunami of drug seekers who hit the city ED's every single day.