Groups representing public health officials and doctors banded together Thursday to petition the US Food and Drug Administration to take ultra-high-dosage opioid pills, tablets and nasal sprays off the market. When prescribed, these opioids equal more than 90 milligrams of morphine (MME) a day in potency.
These can include higher dosages of both fast-acting, immediate-release opioids as well as slow-acting, longer-release formulations of oxycodone, hydromorphone, morphine, oxymorphone, hydrocodone, methadone and fentanyl.
The petition specifically requests the removal of OxyContin 80mg, which when taken twice a day equals 240 MME in 24 hours, as well as the removal of oxycodone 30mg, typically taken four times a day for the equivalent of 180 MME daily.
PhRMA, the pharmaceutical industry’s advocacy arm, declined to comment on the petition.
Although the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 2016 guidelines on opioid prescribing do not prohibit prescribing dosages over 90 milligrams of morphine a day, the agency says clinicians should generally avoid prescribing at such high levels and always start prescribing at the lowest doses. In cases in which they do have to prescribe at high levels, doctors need to use caution and have justified reasons.
Post Your Comments