Letter: County execs say pass pill law

Regarding "Epidemic proportions" [News, Jan. 11], on Long Island, 11 percent of students between seventh and 12th grade reported using prescription painkillers, according to a 2008 survey. But this alarming statistic underestimates the total crisis.

The Centers for Disease Control found that, nationally, deaths by overdose from prescription painkillers have more than tripled in the last decade, from 4,000 in 1999 to 15,000 in 2008, surpassing the number of deaths by overdose of cocaine and heroin use. Pharmacy robberies on Long Island also increased significantly, from just 4 in 2006 to 30 in 2010.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has proposed legislation called the Internet System for Tracking Over-Prescribing Act, or I-STOP, that would connect doctors and pharmacists to a real-time, online database to track frequently abused prescription drugs. This information would prevent overprescribing to a patient, reduce the flow of pharmaceuticals to drug traffickers, and aid in identifying and treating patients who are at risk of addiction.

We urge our colleagues in Albany to pass the I-STOP bill without delay.

Edward Mangano

Steve Bellone

Editor's note: The writers are the executives of Nassau and Suffolk counties, respectively.