Madfloridian's Journal - Now the DEA is raiding CVS and Walgreen pharmacies in the war on drugs. Overkill?

War on drugs moves to pharmacy from jungle

In Florida the DEA "raided two CVS pharmacies and issued inspection warrants at a half-dozen Walgreen Co drugstores and a Walgreen distribution center."

"The techniques that law enforcement uses to combat drug traffickers, whether they're Colombian organizations or Mexican cartels or Afghan drug lords, those techniques are very, very essential in combating prescription drug abuse," DEA Administrator Michele Leonhart said in an interview.

But critics say applying the same strategy to the legitimate supply chain as to Colombian drug lords is ineffective and is also causing supply shortages that hurt pain patients.

"Going after a pharmaceutical manufacturer is not like going after the Medellin cartel," said Adam Fein, president of Pembroke Consulting, which advises pharmaceutical manufacturers. "I don't believe it is appropriate for the DEA to shrink the supply of prescription drugs, because it has unanticipated effects that have nothing to do with the problem."

And this procedure seems a recipe for disaster for those who are patients in pain. It's like treating those with legitimate prescriptions like they are criminals.

That has meant some changes at the agency. For one thing, Leonhart has begun breaking down barriers between the DEA's nearly 5,000 special agents, who have focused on the illicit drug trade for most of their careers, and about 500 diversion investigators, who enforce rules covering handlers of controlled substances.