Health minister sends delegation to US to study opioid crisis
HEALTH Minister Greg Hunt has sent an emergency delegation to the US in a bid to combat an epidemic gripping Australia that has left thousands dead.
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HEALTH Minister Greg Hunt has sent an emergency delegation to the US in a bid to combat an epidemic gripping Australia that has left thousands dead.
As Australia’s prescription drug problem reaches crisis levels, leading health experts met with the US Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) in a bid to head off a disaster in Australia like that which has ravaged America.
“I’m determined we do not end up in the same place as the US,” Mr Hunt said, in an exclusive interview.
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“My time, my watch, my responsibility — I’m going to fix this.
“I was very aware … looking at America (and) the opioid crisis and determined that, while we’ve got significant challenges, that Australia never heads down that US path.”
He dispatched Professor John Skerritt, head of the Therapeutic Goods Administration, which regulates medicines in Australia, to meet with the FDA two weeks ago to look at the regulatory steps that could be taken to limit prescription drugs.
There has been an explosion in the numbers of prescriptions issued for opioids and benzodiazepines, with some diverted to the illicit drugs trade.
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An inquest this year heard pensioners are illegally selling the drugs to supplement their incomes.
Mr Hunt said he was committed to tackling the crisis, and a national real-time monitoring system will be brought in to prevent patients from doctor shopping and gaining multiple prescriptions.
Victoria will trial the system from next month.
Hundreds of Australians die accidentally each year from opioids, with many unaware how dangerous they are, and the epidemic crosses all demographics.
In the five years to 2016, nearly 4000 people died from accidental prescription overdoses across the country — twice the number than a decade earlier.
In 2016 alone, 668 people died accidentally from benzodiazepines.
The drugs are strong opioid painkillers, such as oxycodone, codeine, tramadol and fentanyl as well as benzodiazepines, including temazepam, nitrazepam and diazepam, given to combat pain, anxiety and insomnia.
Often, and dangerously, they are prescribed together.
“People are just not aware how dangerous these drugs can be,” Dr Jennifer Stevens, pain specialist at St Vincent’s Hospital, said.
“They are given out far too easily by doctors.”