Continuing our conversation with all of you this morning about what it is like in your community, what are seeing, what are the problems and what do you think the solutions are . Those with experience with opioid, professionals and all other. To dan, a medical professional in hawaii. Line. S for waiting on the go ahead. Caller good morning. Thank you cspan for letting me talk in this forum. Was a cardiopulmonary specialist for 45 years and recently retired. 197075, 80, 85, i remember working in hospital emergency rooms, you saw many, many, many overdose patients. He patients we saw, i assisted treating, were patients from the African American community, the well, all spanics, as the ghetto areas. Wasnt a back then it problem. Apparently nobody thought nything of it, it was just a ghetto problem. Ah, just those people. Cases where opioids and where were they getting the opioid . From the street. No one bothered to research because it wasnt and im not trying to be a this, but s saying its a white problem or a black was. Lem, but it it was not a white problem. It didnt hit the white yet. Nity now suddenly, as it hits the affluent community, its a problem. Question going back to the days when aids first problem, it wasnt got aids, hudson suddenly it was a problem. Host can i ask you, doctor, i our guest when i asked her what makes it an epidemic, a crisis, she said the Alarming Number of overdoses that rise 1999. That is what caller back then in the 1970s, was a fee for Service Industry and physicians got well Services Back in those days. Now with healthcare being so on reimbursements, doctors have found ways to try recapture the patients and with patients visiting for back pain, instead of ordering medicine, they dont get reimbursed for, they order edication that gives them an addiction, they will come back to the Physicians Office and get a reorder. To that is the only way they will apture a fee is to get that patient back in the office and get the medication ordered again. And that arena, that is the real problem. Like healthcare is notoriously of, healthcare treats symptoms, not the problem, the physicians the office. Why isnt attention paid to that of the issue . The physician. Overprescribing, making opioids available, addicted . Eople why doesnt the government look at that aspect and try to egulate physicians from over prescribing. Thats cdc what about the guidelines that came out about somebodyng, dont give enough pills for seven days or give them enough pills for three days and make them come back and see you. Caller who enforces that . Is my question. Host yeah. Yeah. Because it is a guideline, not a regulation. Doctor, i will leave it there and go to ken in california. Ken, good morning. Caller hello. How are you . Host doing well, ken. Story. With us your caller okay. Well, when i was about 18, i was by a gang and my neck was and n, my back was broken so im basically my whole body metal and i have chronic debilitating pain. The c. D. C. Of my medication has been cut back 60 because the doctor is saying that theyre being told by their attorneys that ctors conferences hey will be shut down by the d. E. A. If they exceed the c. D. C. Were basically all being treated like trug abusers or drug addicts and that have legitimate use for the drug consist no longer get what we need. Before, ken. D that these are guidelines from the c. D. C. , you can find it on the at cdc. Gov. Elaine, go ahead. Caller i just recently got out hospital, but ive had, i or seven , six surgerys from aorta to my knees, had aneurysm fixed recently. From one of the results from prior surgery was severe leg, theyy in my right cut a nerve or something. Make a long story short, this hospital, i the came in the o. R. , the recovery they gave me morphine for the pain and it worked. Icu, they quituma giving me morphine and put me on milligrams of oxycodone, that is what i was taking at home. I was in excruciating pain, just excruciating pain. Of my history, i had a ackground of what is pain and whats not. Make a long story short, i my sister and said, this is not working, i want to get a of here and get in hospital that will treat me. She called some people at the someone and they had from the Administration Come down to talk to me because it like the nurses were just reading from a playbook and everybody has to and nothing, but this. And so i told her about the i told her what they were doing prior to her visit with me and she said, i said, why dont they prescribe morphine and like out of the a lot of she said, people who take morphine get addicted. Said, ive taken oxycodone for nine years and im prescribed 40 milligrams and i only take 15 to 20 per day, does that sund like a person who has problem . Tion anyway, she told the nurses to milligrams of morphine, i had one dose and on home because it stopped the pain. Ann, good morning to you. Hello. I worked as nurse assistant in texas. Had over there lots of cleanings. The doctor who sometimes doctors re very often they treat symptom. Somebody come and say, im in ain, they give them medication for the pain and they dont give ofm medication for the cause the pain. Sually patients are very poor, have good hey dont medical insurance. Vancouver. R in hi, cspan. This is not only opioid, it is is onality disorder that extremely my first addiction happened when i was my big wheel d on when i was trying to make it go faster than it was designed to good. Made me feel i didnt know at the time, you later i foundears out that i couldnt walk away from a glass of whiskey, you not walk away from it. If it was available, i would use it. Get nly reason i didnt into hard drugs, it ruined my alcoholism. So for me, the reason im you had one call earlier, the man sounded broke my heart to him is do ay the 12step program, it works, does work. It happens when you least expect it and you will survive. A way. S host thanks, peter. The medical profession, good morning to you. Caller good morning. Name is christy and im the addictionanager of an Chronic Pain Program in houston system and hospital applying Treatment Program for peep welchronic pain amazing. S been he results weve had, and this program anywhere in the country professionals could be associated with Treatment Professionals in large help systems. Have physical therapy, we have pain physicians yoga, a we have traditional nd a Treatment Program. The largest chronic pain meets at our ing facility. So easy. Ion is host okay, christy with her ideas. Gale in tennessee. Good morning. Hard all my life, worked too finally three years ago, i got into a pain clinic, and they are very strict. Finally, on morphine, which i could admit, but i never got high. I never understand what they are. Alking about i never experienced anything like it. Host so you are managing it, taking anything you need for the pain . Caller yes. And all of these people being overdosing, i am afraid theyre going to close out the pain clinics, and then i do not know what i would do. Host taking a look at the headlines from around the thetry, this is courtesy of museum here in washington, this is the newsday paper in long an alleged dealer charged in killing a high school student. There is this from the Daily Courier observer, a new york paper, drug bust success. It says a monday rate on a pine with theartment ended seizure of and then there is this aom the daily dispatch, felony drug charge for a local acenesswoman, who owned an of diamonds store, she is being accused by the police of selling fentanyl. So that in the paper. There is also this from the Pittsburgh Tribune review, festivalrelated Overdose Deaths continue to spike as officials seek ways to keep substance off the streets. The story out of the Courier Press was quote out of indiana, indiana, itt of says Public Officials a acknowledge that it took the much publici outbreak of hiv to help turn the perception on the issue. It goes on to say that lawmakers are focusing on the Needle Exchange program in house bill 438, a proposal, they say, would make it easier to establish programs is local Health Officials deem it necessary. It passed the Indiana House chamber and will go through the legislative process on the senate side. By the way, the indiana governor, eric holcomb, talking about the issue in his state of the state address as well. [video clip] problemcomb this is a that has taken an enormous toll across the country, and indiana has not escaped the pain. Since the 2000, deaths from drug overdoses have increased 500 , and we are 15th in the country and overdose fatalities. This epidemic causes ripple effects with devastating impact on our children and families, our cities and towns, our schools, government agencies, health care system, and our health care costs. Hoosierl fashio, we have heroes on the front lines saving lives everyday. They include the Public HealthSyringe Exchange programs in nine indiana counties. One, carla, who is here with us tonight. Thank you for your unwavering service to those who are battling addiction. [applause] gov. Holcomb and that is why we will give county officials authorities to establish Syringe Exchange programs to ensure that the people making those decisions of those closest to the problem, but we need to do more, much more, so we are going to attack this problem on all. Ronts prevention , treatment, and enforcement earlier this month, i announced the creative of a senior executive, reporting directly to me, to oversee the executive, and im pleased that a former longtime ceo of Goodwill Industries has agreed to join our team. I cannot think of anyone who has a better mix of skills and experience to fill this critical role. To limit the amount of controlled substances, prescriptions, and refills, enhanced penalties and commit those of those who commit pharmacy robbery and u policeg indiana state labs in fighting the epidemic. This is something we can and must win if were going to take indiana to the next level. Host the indiana governor talking about opioid abuse and heroin abuse in his state. What is it like where you live . Dave in ohio, good money to you. Go ahead. Good morning to you. Go ahead. Caller i have been involved in Pain Management most of my life. I was split up the middle. I went through a telephone pole on my motorcycle, and i had a to on me atl dropped work. And my general practitioner, he sent me into Pain Management, and it was a wonderful thing for me. You follow the medicines as prescribed, and they do a urine test on me and make sure my levels stay at what they are supposed to be a, and it shows that im taking my medication as prescribed. Then over the years here, now, i am almost 60 years old now, and i have been in this program, and it has done wonders. I have been able to make a , and asand as a result a result of Pain Management. As a general practitioner, my doctor who sent me there, i cannot thank them enough for sending me through that program. We tried the areas ways of different things, but with the damage that was done from all these accidents that i could not function without the opiates, but anyhow, i started to notice here in the community, are we start reading in the paper, i have been around at different parties, riding a motorcycle, and stuff like that, and people say, oh, i am in so much pain. Well, talk to your doctor, they have a Wonderful Program called Pain Management. Out, yeah, they kicked me they took my urine. So i can watch them, and i can tell with the addictive personalities. The one woman a couple of calls before, where you get the high from the stuff . I do not get high off of it. I am prescribed enough i mean, it does not take all the pain out host dave, how often do you have to go back to get another round of prescriptions . Caller i have to go in every three months, and then i have got to call once a month in, and i have got to go physically get the prescription pad itself. Host what if you call your doctor after two months and said, i ran out, i need more. What would happen . Caller i would be kicked out of the program because i did not take it as directed. Host sorry, dave, i thought you were finished. Talking about managing his pain through a Pain Management facility. On twitter, let me show you some reaction, Jason Anderson why not put prescriptions in electronic monitoring . Vivian says, who can afford and offices in every three days or even every 30 days . A law that should be people should have to go through physical therapy or chiropractic for pain first before getting ed drugs. Mary says, watching this today, so sad, so sorry. Another acupuncture can change pain perception. I have to pay outofpocket for it. Mary is next. Go ahead. Caller my name is mary, and i have had chronic pain for the last 15 years pretty much. My i learned to live with pain, like, at a level 4. I get back injections. , and ifain medication you are in chronic pain, you are going to have to live with it at a certain level. That is just the way it is. Oris not about getting high anything like that. You just have to learn to live with it at a written level. And go on your life and walk and exercise. And not hurting all the time. Ok, sophia in maryland, good morning to you. Are you there . Caller hello . Host you are on the air. Caller oh, hi. How are you doing . I am calling because i really think that we have i have an idea for a solution to the program i mean, the problem. I know that some people have suggested this before, and it would go a long way, the indiana governor with a about treating say about would treating addiction as the medical illness that it is. I think it is important to decriminalize addiction, and i think that doing so would take pressure off of our prison and it would help things on so many levels. War on drugsg the and instead creating a peoplecentered solutionbased program that helps people out of their addiction, be a Prescription Drugs or be it to recreational haieroin, cocaine, etc. I think helping people out of their addiction would solve problems, and i think that that is the way to go. I think trying to put more people in jail is just taking people of color in people in impoverished neighborhoods out of neighborhoods and out of society, and i do not think that it best solution. Host ok. Ryan in maine. Good morning. Go ahead. Share your thoughts. Caller hi. Talking about the treatment as what isfar available host how do you know that, ryan . Is that the situation in maine . Caller certainly. I think it is that way in a lot of other places. But in maine state, there is only one currently with less and 20 bed than 20 beds. People are turned away. Managers of these facilities say that is almost a death sentence. It could be a death sentence to turn someone away at that point. They have to wait two or three months to get a bad, and they are bed, and they are desperate people. Nd that, you look at the host getting treatment beyond the detox . Caller yeah. Host halfway houses. Caller you deal with this for the rest of your life. Host ryan, you said it is really bad. Describe it. Caller describe it . Host you said it is really bad where you live. How bad . What have you heard, what have you seen . Caller well, it is coming in a, know, i it is, you would say it has probably taken 20 of the workforce and the 40s, age0s, population, 20 of those people out of the mix of society. They are living a different kind of lifestyle. It is killing a large percentage isthose people who are or severely inhibiting their prospects for the rest of their lives, their health aspects. Host go ahead, ryan. Caller after care is what i was really cant give out, longterm about,ing to speak longterm, alternative care for their addictions, counseling, so problem,explore the the Mental Health at least half many addicts are dealing with some kind of underlying thatl Health Component makes them, you know, become addicts. Host ryan in maine. Take a look at what is happening around the country in some of the states. Mass. Gov tweeting this out learn about the Opioid Epidemic with the interactive version of the chapter 55 report. You can see how the country and the state there him of the situation, what it was like in 2000, and how it has become redder, more of a situation across the country in 2015. And then addiction medicine, a group, tweeted out this picture of dr. Corey weller, who was part of our coverage earlier this week, of the haieroin task force, quoting him as saying we called 111 medicals and found out that an average less than one hour was dedicated to addiction education. That was dr. Corey wallers testimony. This in virginia, seven different bills in the house of delegates take aim at the opioid state. C in that that is some of what is happening across the country that you can see on twitter. Let me show you down in georgia how the governor talked about it in his state of the state. Eal there are those issues that have an influence over at the state level. One such area is an ongoing epidemic that ravages the hearts and minds of not only individuals but also the communities that they touch. It is an epidemic that high in hindsight, and ensnares the victims without regard to age, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, neighborhood, or station in life. Opioidferring to the addiction epidemic. Many communities and individuals must now contend with this. Last month, i signed an executive order directing the department of Public Health to issue a Standing Order to allow oxolone, the emergency drug to reverse opioid overdoses, to be dispense overthecounter by pharmasset across the state. [applause] gov. Neal i requested that the georgia board of pharmacists remove naxolone from the dangerous drug list and rescheduling and as a schedule five drug, which is exempt. They quickly to fill this request, and because of that action, lives have already been saved. During this session, i asked that we not