tv Newsmakers CSPAN April 24, 2011 10:00am-10:30am EDT
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interpreted what damian said is that we did live with plenty. i am read on the edge, i am -- i am 52. i will not ever see that. we are forced to pay social security, it was not a choice. they take it and that is it. yes, at the time they lived in their prime, they lived in the sweet spot. host: that is all the time we have this morning. thank you all for calling in. happy easter to those of you who celebrate easter. enjoy the rest of your sunday. tomorrow, "washington journal" will be back in march zandy is a chief economist and will be with us and will talk about reducing the deficit. selinda lake will then talk about women and their attitude toward deficit cutting. finally, we will look at
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neutrality with lynn stanton of the telecommunications report. thank you all for being with us, enjoy your day. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] ♪ >> next come "newsmaker." we'll talk with had a drug policy for the white house and then president obama at a town hall meeting in california and then the director of a cement -- ocean energy management on the safety of offshore drilling. >> joining us is the white
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house drug control policy director. thank you for being with us. caldwell is with us. the biggest problem in terms of drugs is not illegal drugs but prescription drugs. i want to follow on that and ask you if there are pockets in the country where you see a higher rate of drug use due to the economy. guest: we get more pockets. i'm not sure it is attached to the economy. we were in appalachian for four days. when i talk to people there who have been a fact -- affected by prescription drugs it was because of an industry may be in mining. they had to be given a prescription and it rolled over into an addiction. >> why are doctors providing this kind of drugs to so many people? >> first, about 10 or 12 years ago, the medical profession came to the conclusion they were
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under-treating pain. that was probably quite true. the pendulum has swung quite a bit the other way. the number of prescriptions being written. the other difficulty around the medical community is in the fact that they don't actually have as much information in training and education about addiction and pain management and tolerance and a dependence. as we would like to see them have. that is what they would like. host: why are these drugs so addictive? guest: it is synthetic heroin in a way. they can be as addictive as people that use or inject heroin. the other part is that people don't recognize that because it is a prescription, it made me not only addictive but it can be quite deadly. guest: halimah abdullah, you are next. >> how did we get to the point
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where prescription drug overdoses rival the cracker overdoses and heroin overdoses of the 1970's and 1980's and why is it acute in areas like the appalachian region of kentucky, most of florida, and california? guest: we might have gotten there because it -- it is a bit of a stealth drug problem. crack cocaine was on the front pages month after month, day after day. we have seen pockets of where heroin overdoses -- chicago a few years ago -- would get a lot of attention. these are prescription drugs. there are not manufactured in the back of some apartments. they are not sold in a piece of tin foil or a piece of plastic. people don't recognize the level of danger isness. ousness. we have seen wealthy individuals, older individuals, young people who get their first
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initiation of drug use from the medicine cabinet. i would tell you that this cuts across every demographic. caldwell. overdose deaths or prescribed to prescription drugs. is that youtube efforts at the border with illegal drugs and people going to the pharmacy cabinet and is perceived as safer? guest: when we look at what is driving this large number of overdose deaths, it is essentially in prescription drugs. they become much more readily available. people keep them in their medicine cabinets when in fact we want to help them dispose of them in an environmentally safe way. people doctor-shop. there are positions that abuse not only their privileges but
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also law and over-prescribing and prescribing to people that are using them for abuse purposes. they can be widely received. it is clear that the border has done a better job. i still go back to young people and especially in some survey work that is done, they recognize the dangers of heroin and they recognize the danger of injecting. prescription drugs just don't have that skull and crossbones symbol on them. host: we covered about earlier this month where you unveiled the policy of the administration. we heard from a woman who lost her son. to parents understand what their kids are taken? are there signs that parents should be on the lookout for? was she aware of the severity of the drugs, the prescription drugs her son was taking in college? guest: the case karen perry is
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not unique. lots of young people go off to college. if you interview and talk to congress mary bono mack, she talks about her own songs -- her own son going off to college and using prescription drugs. among young people, they go into the college life, aderol and other types of drugs through a prescription or a friend, it is pretty easy to move into these other things. some of the warning signs can clearly big not attending class, bad grades, a change in personality, a change in physical appearance, weight loss e,tc. parents need to be able to ask those questions. >> go back to the border -- do you see it as an onion -- an unintended consequence that folks are switching to pharmaceuticals? we have seen a rash of heroin dedeaths were parents say they
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started with prescription drugs and they were no longer powerful enough. that might have resulted in instantaneous death. how can you connect the parallels? guest: i don't think it is an unintended consequence. the prescription drug problem started on the increase around 2002. it has only been the last few years that there was a significant increase in border protection. because so much initiation of drug use by young people came through the medicine cabinet, it can become more difficult because of the prescription drug monitoring and other things for young people and the cost. oxycontin can be $80 per pill and heroin can be 10 or $15 for a small amount of heroin. >> what about the drug problems
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starting in the medicine cabinet? there are states like oregon where people would need to get a prescription to getcold medicine. what do you think about that approach? guest: this was the oregon approach a little over four years ago to reduce their problem with methamphetamine. some of the ephedrine-based drugs were used to make methamphetamine. their problem has decrease dramatically. it was a little over one year ago that the governor haley barbour of mississippi signed a similar law. the first data shows very strong decreases in their methamphetamine problem. it seems to be something that other states are examined very closely. >> the second and drug strategy
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report was due in february. we still have not seen it. where is it and what is the delay and when can we expected and went -- what can we expect when it arrives? guest: every president's drug strategy is usually their most important piece. when president obama released the drug strategy in may of last year, it was a couple of months later. one reason for that is that his direction to meet was that he wants the voices of the american people in the drug strategy. rather than sitting here inside the beltway and writing this up, we actually toured the country listening to people. the second strategy should be out and it builds upon the first strategy which you will see increased emphasis in the area of college students and what we should be doing for them and increased emphasis around are military veterans and active
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duty military. >> do you know when that will happen? guest: within the next couple of weeks, that strategy will be out host: are there federal dollars behind this? what states are doing the most and which ones are doing the least? where are the biggest areas of concern to guest:? around prescription drugs, there has been money. there's a pot of money call hale-rogers prescription drug plan. this is to help the states get started with an electronic database that will help medical boards and boards of pharmacy identify doctors who may be over-prescribing or patients who may be a doctor shopping and there is money in the national institute of justice budget to get that started in my travels around the country, there are a number of states that have taken leads in this pretty state of kentucky as one of the best electronic databases. we're hopeful that with the new
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health care law that electronic health records will help in the way of improving patients' safety host: the mood in this town is to cut spending. will you have the money to do this? guest: i believe there is a will to do this. the prescription drug plan release is not asking for an infusion of new money. it is about what government is supposed to do -- work together, work smarter, and figure out a way to solve the problem without just throwing money at it. >> about the prescription drug monitoring programs like kentucky and other states have, there has been some concern -- governor rick scott in florida cited privacy concerns and law enforcement officers in various states have worried that different states have different ways of collecting information and they don't share that data than these programs may not be as effective as possible. guest: i think that is an
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absolutely legitimate question. first of all, when the state's get these laws passed, they can provide all levels of patient confidentiality and privacy they want. the second part that we encourage is that states be able to have an exchange of information so that if we have a problem -- kentucky and ohio have signed an agreement to be able to share information. frankly, i don't get the sense there is a mood in this country for any type of national data base when it comes to prescription drug. i think the practice of medicine is controlled at the state level. it is not controlled by the federal government. given guidance and best practices, the states are in the best position to make this work. host: what is the role of
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pharmacists and doctors and all of the guest: stacks there is a significant role. they can be attuned to these problems to make sure they are checking their prescriptions, forged prescriptions and some places it can be a significant problem. host: it seems to be non- prescription drugs are on the front lines. guest: the pharmacists are very attuned to this. they have been incredibly helpful. physicians are dealing with a large amount of information that they need to treat them understand and diagnose a whole host of other issues. physicians often times don't get all the information or sometimes even any of the information they need to understand pain management, e addictiontc. that's why part of this
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prescription drug plan is to work with congress to have mandatory prescribe for education. we look forward to working with congress and getting that legislation. >> to jump around again, there were reports of this week that you are being considered for the top job in chicago. can you address those reports? host: this is an incredible opportunity to be asked by the president and vice president to lead our nation's drug policy. the chicago police department as most people know, my whole career, 37 years, is in policing. i don't know what will happen. the chicago police board is actively looking for a new superintendent. that is about as bad as much as i can to host: l u are you interested in the job guest:? i would not have applied if i did not have an interest. >> prescription drug abuse has
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been a problem for years. as early as 2000, optacon and was becoming a problem in philadelphia. one doctor was charged with a p running mateill mill and we saw that -- one doctor was charged with running a pill mill. why has it taken so long to push for these registries of prescription drugs? guest: pill mills are unique. they have been like a prescription drug problem, somewhat under the radar screen. the broward county area of florida has been the focus but we have seen these pill mills and these are places where doctors write an inordinate amount of prescriptions. i met with women who were in custody in kentucky for prescription drug problems, they often talked about going to these pill mills.
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they are very difficult cases. they are very labor intensive. these are physicians. if you go in with a broken arm, it is clear with the diagnosis is. if you say you are in pain, is much more vague. these are tough cases to make. i applied the dea and the local agencies particularly b theroward county sheriff's office. >> going back to kentucky and some of their efforts, they have long been dealing with this issue for well over a decade. one of the programs that congressman rogers has in place this operation unite which works to educate the public and the work on law enforcement. to what extent is the administration looking to that as a model? guest: these are prevention programs.
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many of the young people had given up some sports activities and other things to be at the dinner that evening and that was quite moving. we find about 740 drug-free communities. we do this through our partner at samsung. sam --sa. these small grants work together -- bring together grassroots communities and others like law enforcement in the school system, faith-based, to work at preventing drug use. the answer to the drug problem when it comes to preventing drug use among young people frankly does not come from inside the beltway. they come from these grass-roots organizations. these are people who are dedicated and committed. it is our responsibility to give them a leg up and give them information to do a better job.
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host: b endroward county, in -- broward county alone, about 1 million illegal kills. l pills. guest: there is information that the pharmaceutical companies must provide about manufacture and production of these drugs and where they go. back and often lead to information about where there may be abuse of the system or criminal activity. i think that is an important issue. there are many people that discuss if there should be a reduction in the quota or production. one thing we don't want to say is for many people in severe or chronic pain, these drugs are often lifesavers. when used appropriately, this is
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very important that would not react so stridently that the pills that are needed for people with chronic pain are removed or inaccessible. this is a complex problem and it is a balancing act. host: it is a generational issue? have an answer for that. i know the drug issue among young people, especially for a very powerful painkillers, is much more about getting it from a friend or through a relative or out of the medicine cabinet then it is through a prescription. , with the exception of dental work. dentists for the number one for scribers of very powerful painkillers. they are no longer number 1 because they realize that even though there is pai with wisdom teeth, there is other medication far less dangerous than what had been described. >> back to the drug war -- the
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president authorized about 1200 national guard troops to be on the border for one year. that term ends early this summer. many legislators and governors have said they want more. they want increased presence. where do you see the future of putting troops on the border in order to stop what has been described as an onslaught of drugs coming across the southwest border guest:? we have seen increases in caesars along the border. some people would say that is because there are additional drugs coming across. because the border has been strengthened, we have gone from 10,000 border patrol's t sinceo 20,000 and we have seen an infusion of other federal agencies plus technology. it only makes sense that we will make seizures along the border.
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clearly, these are decisions that rest in the hands of the president and the secretary of defense and the secretary of homeland security. >> what type of response have you gotten from the pharmaceutical industry to help with these efforts? guest: they have been supportive of where we are headed and what we want to do. they want to see these prescription drugs used appropriately, prescribe appropriately. they don't want to continue to see this level of abuse. frankly, the debts are being caught as a result of this. i have been pleased with the fact that they have been supportive in many ways. we will do a better job on this. as a police chief for a long time, cynicism comes with my profession. i would tell you that i am pretty optimistic that we will make a real dent in the prescription drug problem as a
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result of all these efforts together. >> is there consistency among al 56 -- all 50 states out a deal guest: this? no, there is not. some states move more quickly. it has taken a number of years to get a bill passed. in the state of georgia, it has taken a long time. they just recently passed that law. two other states can online. governor o'malley will be p signingdmp legislation very sound and the state of arkansas. the states are moving in the right direction and some are moving more robustly and quickly than others. >> synthetic drugs have recently come into the news as a significant problem. they could be chemicals that mimic the effect of heroin, cocaine and others.
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how significant a problem is that? where do we go from here? tyehe dea says there is home -- do. some of weekew --e can how you deal with that? guest: the d. h. used their but mr. powers to -- the d a -- the dea use their administrative problems to outlaw a synthetic marijuana. the states to move more quickly and have more flexibility than the federal government. whether it was synthetic marijuana or bath salts, we have seen the state's move pretty effectively and quickly to ban those substances. >> let me go back to kentucky and jump to georgia.
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is there anything that kentucky should be doing more of an order to curb this problem? to what extent what they are doing serve as a model for states like georgia that recently passed legislation? guest: i have been very impressed with the community spirit in kentucky and particularly those poor rural areas. there is not a huge amount of reporting. why comes to national news, it often comes out of alachua. appalachia. every single story in the local newspaper but one involved in drugs. a car crash where the mother was alleged to be under the influence of drugs a, meth lab in a parket5c,. this affects people across the country. parents want their kids to be
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drug-free and educated in school and they don't want their families impacted. there is a spirit of community. it is not just about law enforcement are having a good prescription drug monitoring plan which kentucky has, but it is also about the leadership in that state. this issue has really been taken on. i have been impressed what i saw in kentucky and i hope they could be helpful to the new governor in georgia and getting the law moving forward. host: is this problem unique to america? do we see this in canada and other western countries that guest: it is not unique to america. the countries and governments in which prescription drugs and pills are more widely available are also experiencing similar problems. i don't think anyone is to experiencing it to the degree that the united states is.
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we are also the only country in the world that has direct to consumer marketing of pills. lessons herehere we can apply elsewhere? guest: working with other governments about prevention programs that can help young people away from drugs regardless of whether it is a prescription drug or an illicit drug all have some efficacy. >> the larger drug or conundrum has been how we curb the appetite for drugs in the u.s. and how you stop the flow of drugs. how you combine that at this stage with the enforcement efforts? a criticism has been that the focus is on enforcement only, forget about the consumption. you have said consumption is the problem we should be tackling. how'd he do that this stage? host: the first interview i did, i try to end that rhetoric about
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the war on drugs for it just does not make sense to deal with what clearly is not just a public safety problem, but also a public health and age occasional problem. guest: you have heard this from the president and secretary clinton especially when we deal with mexico or other government is to say we need to reduce our own demand for drugs with in this country. we need to understand and recognize that we are having shared responsibility. what is not always recognized is that other countries like mexico also have their own problems when it comes to addiction. we used to think of a country that would only produce drugs or transit drugs and we never really thought of them as a consumer. clearly, mexico is also a consumer nation as are some of the poorest countries in west africa. from a worldwide perspective, we are all in this drug issue together. we need to be smart about it.
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we cannot just use law enforcement and criminal justice as an answer. clearly, that is not the best answer. host: you're the director of the national drug control policy and thank you for joining us. we can't tell you withalicia caldwell . let me ask you about the border issue. did you learn anything new about the flow of drugs across the border and what the u.s. is trying to do about that >>? new? probably not. in recent years, the rise of the drug seizures verses the drop in apprehensions of people crossing the border, lots of reasons for that. the director said very specifically it is not just a law enforcement problems in terms of the drug problemth
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