West Virginia OxyContin Rehabs

The DEA¹ (United States Drug Enforcement Administration) reports that current investigations indicate that diversion of hydrocodone products and diazepam continues to be a problem in West Virginia. Primary methods of diversion being reported are illegal sale and distribution by health care professionals and workers, “doctor shopping” (going to a number of doctors to obtain prescriptions for a controlled pharmaceutical), employee theft, forged prescriptions, and the Internet. Alprazolam, Vicodin, and methadone were also identified as being among the most commonly abused and diverted pharmaceuticals in West Virginia. West Virginia leads the nation in methadone-related deaths per capita, and has the fastest-growing rate of methadone overdoses.

The United States GAO (General Accounting Office) states in a published Prescription Drugs report entitled, OxyContin Abuse and Diversion and Efforts to Address the Problem, "Among several regulatory and administrative actions taken to limit abusers’access to OxyContin and controlled substances, DEA’s Office of Diversion Control, in collaboration with the Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Assistance, provides grants to states for the establishment of prescription drug monitoring programs. The conference committee report for the fiscal year 2002 appropriation to the Department of Justice directed the Office of Justice Programs to make a $2 million grant in support of the Harold Rogers Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, which enhances the capacity of regulatory and law enforcement agencies to collect and analyze controlled substance prescription data. The program provided grants to establish new monitoring programs in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia. California, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nevada, and Utah also received grants to enhance existing monitoring programs."²

OxyContin Abuse News did a story in February 2001, stating OxyContin prescription drug intended as a painkiller for cancer patients is being especially abused in areas of the East. OxyContin abusers are going taking many measures to feed their OxyContin addiction. One of the largest drug raids in Kentucky history, authorities arrested 207 people on OxyContin charges after an 8-month investigation. Kentucky is not the only area affected by OxyContin, as a surge of OxyContin popularity has started to infect Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Maine, in addition to other areas. Even medical staff has been involved in OxyContin crimes, and during the Kentucky OxyContin “roundup” a nurse was charged with stealing OxyContin from her hospital, in addition to other suspects that worked in a doctor’s office and that called in prescriptions of OxyContin to pharmacies. Other states have had instances of doctors and medical staff being arrested in connection with OxyContin fraud. ³

The VA office of Inspector General published a report on Diversion and Abuse of Oxycontin. In it they report, "Diversion and abuse of the prescription pain reliever OxyContin and other forms ofoxycodone products are ever increasing. The National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC) National Drug Threat Survey 2000 and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) report that abuse of this class of drugs, particularly OxyContin, is markedly significant and the drug of choice in the eastern United States, specifically in the states of Maine, Ohio, West Virginia, portions of eastern Kentucky, Maryland, western Pennsylvania, and rural southwestern Virginia. Pharmacologically similar to heroin, OxyContin is attractive to the same abuser population. OxyContin’s reliable strength and dosage levels also weigh in heavily in its attraction to heroin abusers. Insurance coverage oftentimes supplements the cost of OxyContin especially if an abuser’s health problems warrant prescription. Conversely, abuser’s are sometimes drawn to abuse heroin after their health insurance ceases to pay for OxyContin and its high street costs makes heroin more affordable. Sometimes, as with abusers of illicit drugs, OxyContin abusers support their habits by committing theft, armed robbery and fraud. Currently, street prices for OxyContin range between $.50 to 1.00 per milligram or between $5.00 to $80.00 per tablet depending on strength. In contrast, licit retail costs range between $1.25 per tablet for the 10-milligram strength and $6.00 per tablet for the 80-milligram strength. The 160 milligram tablet was recently taken off the market by the manufacturer and its future availability is not known."⁴

National Conference of State Legislatures published an article called The Double Life of OxyContin: Miracle Painkiller AND Illicit Street Drug What Are States Doing? Included in its findings, "When reports first surfaced in 2000 of overdoses in Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia, some officials believed the abuse of the powerful prescription painkiller OxyContin was limited to small areas of the Appalachian mountains. Yet reports of its diversion and abuse continued to spread beyond rural areas, into cities and large metropolitan areas across the nation. In response, numerous actions by state and federal officials and agencies—as well as the drug's manufacturer—are being taken to prevent and identify the abuse and diversion of controlled substances used in the treatment of pain.
In December 2003, the United States General Accounting Office released a report entitled, "Oxycontin Abuse and Diversion and the Efforts to Address the Problem." The report, conducted at the request of three United States Congressmen, sought to identify the problems that led to OxyContin's abuse and diversion and to make recommendations about improving the prevention of controlled substances like OxyContin.
Several deaths have resulted specifically from the abuse of OxyContin in Kentucky, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia, according to the U.S. Department of Justice's National Drug Intelligence Center. And because drug abuse knows no boundaries, officials as far away as Utah appear braced for the potential since one death in that state has already been attributed to the drug."⁵

Just in the state of West Virginia, there are many different types of drug rehab and treatment facilities. In the United States, there are thousands of drug rehab and treatment centers treating alcoholism to OxyContin addiction. Of course the common goal of all addiction treatment programs is to help end addiction for the individual. In West Virginia and across the United States, a variety of techniques and methods are being used. Some of the well known treatment methods in West Virginia include the twelve step method, relapse prevention, one-on-one counseling, drug rehabilitation, behavioral modification, cognitive therapy, support groups, sober living, therapeutic communities, AA , NA, inpatient, and outpatient drug rehab programs. There are many types of treatment centers available in West Virginia, so making a decision can be difficult. Unfortunately, many uninformed people in West Virginia go from rehab to rehab looking for the one that is right for them.

In West Virginia, there are many attempts being made to meet the needs of drug addicts, but statistics show success rates to be dismally low. What is needed and wanted is a drug treatment which not only handles physical addiction, but finds the underlying reasons why a person turns to drugs in order to free the person forever. What West Virginia addicts, alcoholics and their family, friends and loved ones need is a real and effective drug rehab treatment center; one where they are not on a time schedule or use other drugs to get the addict off the original drugs. The addict needs a reliable proven program where when they are done, their drug addiction is a thing of the past and they are now able to live full productive lives free of the stronghold of drugs or alcohol. |

For individuals with a severe drug or alcohol addiction problem, choosing a long-term inpatient treatment program is another key to a successful outcome.

For individuals with a severe drug or alcohol addiction problem, choosing a long-term inpatient treatment program is another key to a successful outcome. By providing a new, safe trigger free environment, distanced from past negative associations and surroundings for an extended period of time, the chance for success increases dramatically.

Our drug rehab treatment program provides people with positive circumstances to increase their chances for a successful recovery. The vast majority of students entering our program, around (80%), are from out of state or from other countries.