Category Archives: Drug Overdose

FDA advisers recommend selling Narcan over the counter (OTC)

Posted on by • Posted in Drug Overdose, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Harm-Mitigation Tools, Health Policy, Narcan, Opioid Epidemic • Leave a comment

https://mailchi.mp/89b749fe24b8/the-weekly-gist-february-17-2023?e=d1e747d2d8

 On Wednesday, a joint Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel unanimously recommended that the anti-opioid overdose drug Narcan (known generically as naloxone) be made available in nasal spray form without a prescription. It’s highly likely the FDA will grant OTC approval to Narcan next month, which could make it more widely available to the public as soon as this summer.

The Gist: Narcan has become one of the most essential tools to combat the unrelenting epidemic of opioid-related drug overdoses, which claimed a record 107K lives in 2021. Even though the medication can be prescribed to at-risk individuals and others who are in close contact with drug users, access thus far has been limited mostly to emergency responders and outreach workers.

While the US has successfully reduced the availability of the prescription opioids that initially sparked the crisis, a majority of recent deaths are attributed to synthetic opioids like fentanyl. This much-needed policy change acknowledges that efforts to restrict drug supply have stalled, and shifts the focus to broadening access to effective harm-mitigation tools. 

As community leaders on the frontline of the opioid epidemic, hospitals and providers can play a valuable role in publicizing expanded Narcan availability.

New York physician charged with manslaughter in patient death

Posted on by • Posted in Attorney General, Do No Harm, Drug Overdose, False Claims Act, Felony, Indictment, Malpractice, Manslaughter, Oath to do no Harm, Opioid Epidemic, Physician, Rev Cycle Management, Revenue Cycle, Risk Management, State Attorney Generals (AG) • Leave a comment
https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/legal-regulatory-issues/new-york-physician-charged-with-manslaughter-in-patient-death.html?origin=CFOE&utm_source=CFOE&utm_medium=email&utm_content=newsletter&oly_enc_id=2893H2397267F7G
Legal and Illegal Drug Overdose: Guide to Signs, Symptoms, and Help

A New York physician has been charged with manslaughter in the second degree and is facing other felonies related to the overdose death of a patient, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Feb. 19. 

Sudipt Deshmukh, MD, allegedly prescribed a lethal mix of opioids and other controlled substances that resulted in the overdose death of a patient. The physician allegedly knew the patient struggled with addiction.

An indictment, unsealed Feb. 18, alleges that between 2006 and 2016, Dr. Deshmukh ignored his professional responsibilities by prescribing combinations of opioid painkillers and other controlled substances, including hydrocodone, methadone and morphine, without regard to the risk of death associated with the combinations of those drugs.  

Dr. Deshmukh is facing several felony charges, including healthcare fraud, for allegedly causing Medicare to pay for medically unnecessary prescriptions. 

The indictment comes after the attorney general’s office filed a felony complaint against Dr. Deshmukh in August. In 2019, the New York State Office of Professional Medical Conduct found that he committed several counts of misconduct.