PRESCRIPTIONS: Prescriptions for opioid painkillers are common in OR, with more than 3.14 million prescriptions issued in 2015. As a proportion of all lobbyists, Raleigh had fewer opioid industry and affiliated lobbyists deployed than most other state capitals.
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State candidates and parties in Louisiana have received at least $1 million in contributions from Pain Care Forum members since 2006.
But Nevada isn’t alone: a joint investigation by The Associated Press and the Center for Public Integrity found that drugmakers that produce opioid painkillers and allied advocacy groups spent more than $880 million on campaign contributions and lobbying nationwide over the past decade. Reporters analyzed campaign finance and lobbying data from 2006 through 2015, reviewed hundreds of documents and conducted more than 150 interviews.
Also known as CARA, the legislation would “provide a series of incentives and resources created to encourage states and local communities to pursue a full array of proven strategies to combat addiction”, according to a statement from Portman’s office.
One theory to explain the forum’s limited North Carolina spending is that the pharmaceutical industry’s long and deep presence in the state means politicians are predisposed to listen when companies come calling, said Bob Hall, executive director of Democracy North Carolina, which tracks political contributions.
Since 2006, Maryland has had an average of 31 registered lobbyists each year employed by members of the Pain Care Forum, a coalition of companies and advocacy groups that meets to discuss opioid-related issues.
The investigation by AP and CPI found that the Pain Care Forum worked in Washington over the past decade to quietly derail efforts to curb USA consumption of pain-killing drugs, such as OxyContin, by promoting the vital role of prescription painkillers in Americans’ lives.
Groups dedicated to advocating for opioid restrictions didn’t give anything in New Jersey. But opioid makers and their allies hired 15 lobbyists in Santa Fe that year – up from nine the year before. Frank Pallone leading the way at more than $450,000. Republican Party committees received about $137,000, while Democratic ones got $41,000. “It’s possible that this was not brought up by any of the stakeholders or members”, he said.
“If they were against any of the bills, I wrote and proposed and put them into circulation”, he said.
Pallone helped usher through Congress a bill signed into law earlier in July dealing with addiction and treatment.
But opioid industry lobbying hasn’t skipped North Carolina.
Two of New Jersey’s big recipients among state lawmakers were the Democratic lawmakers who have always been chairmen of their chambers’ health committees. But they differ on one emerging area of regulation.
It took several years for Hawaii lawmakers to pass legislation to limit opioid prescriptions.
Conaway, a physician, has not held hearings on the measure in his committee. “Either you believe that the government can practice medicine or you don’t”, Conaway said.
He said he’s seen teenagers and others suffering from vehicle accidents, head injuries and fatalities because of addictions to painkillers they should have never been taking.
In June, North Carolina became the third state to make the opioid antidote drug naloxone available to anyone who thinks they should have it available. Because of patent protections, there are not yet lower-priced generic versions of the formulations.
A measure introduced during this year’s IN legislative session would have required insurance coverage of purportedly less addictive types of opioids – a move that would benefit pharmaceutical companies.
Conaway and Vitale were both sponsors of the bill, which Vitale said was suggested by an opioid company lobbyist, though he said he did not recall which one.
Drug overdose deaths in Hawaii increased by 83 percent from 2006 to 2014, a growth rate more than double the national average of 37 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Overdose deaths also climbed at about the same rate.
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The majority of those had links to prescription opioids or heroin. That per capita rate was the 11th highest in the country, according to an analysis of prescription data from IMS Health.
