Letter: Elderly often depend on painkillers
1. Painkiller Abuse on Long Island
David Laffer pleaded guilty to killing four in a Father Day's shooting at a Medford pharmacy before fleeing with more than 10,000 painkillers, police said. State records show Laffer and his wife, Melinda Brady, filled prescriptions for almost 12,000 pain pills from dozens of doctors over four years. The Drug Enforcement Administration seized records from three doctors on Long Island, including Dr. Eric Jacobson, who had prescribed thousands of pain pills to Laffer and Brady.
The state Senate is considering a bill to toughen the laws against doctors and pharmacists who illegally dispense or sell prescription painkillers, in light of findings that show more people die from prescription-drug overdoses than heroin and cocaine combined, reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Click here to read more about the Medford murders.
Credit: Thomas A. Ferrara/2011
Dr. Maria Torroella Carney is correct in her analysis of proposed New York State legislation to track prescriptions of controlled substances ["Opiate medicines are lifesavers, too," Opinion, May 31]. She states that many people need these medications to alleviate pain. I believe that one unintended consequence would be the negative impact on senior citizens.
The elderly, far more than any other group, depend on prescription drugs to get around without too much pain or discomfort. I know firsthand, as I am 74. This, obviously, is because the more we age, the more physical difficulty we have.
Any legislation would have very little effect on the abuse of narcotics. Just as it has always been easy to obtain a firearm, it will be just as easy in the black market to obtain controlled substances.
I'm not against legislation to try to stop the abuses of controlled substances, but don't limit the drugs that are available to seniors.
Tom Santoro, Holbrook
