View this article online: https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southeast/2014/03/17/323490.htm
South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley is forming a 10-member council to develop a statewide plan to combat prescription drug abuse.
Her executive order on Friday came 10 months after an inspector general’s report found prescription painkiller abuse is rampant in South Carolina, but there’s no statewide effort to combat it.
He recommended that legislators, state officials and the medical community work together, with doctors taking the lead. He described high-prescribers as either motivated by money or naively helping “doctor shoppers.”
Haley’s council includes representatives of state law enforcement, health agencies and regulating boards. They are to present an interim report by May 30 and a final report by Oct. 1.
Last month, Lt. Gov. Glenn McConnell announced legislation criminalizing the illegal possession of prescription drugs and imposing tough penalties for prescription drug trafficking.