There are some people in America who feel the government should reduce restrictions placed on certain prescription medications. To get any kind of prescription medication today a person has to go see a doctor and get that doctor to write a prescription for them. This obviously places liability on the doctor and thus the doctor may be reluctant to prescribe certain medications without a thorough exam or as part of a step-up treatment plan. For some (those with good insurance) this isn't an issue. Good insurance can make doctors accessible and inexpensive. For those without insurance, this approach can be really restrictive.The advent of the internet now puts more information than ever into an individual's hands. A person can look up their symptoms, find a likely diagnosis, and create a common treatment plan in minutes, rather than waiting perhaps days for a medical appointment. The a major downside to this approach is when symptoms are less obvious or might be indicative of a more obscure or far more serious illness. Also, treatments involving prescription drugs are obviously restricted for people who would diagnose and treat themselves.
The sentiment generally goes, "Drug laws aren't in place because of you or me. They're in place for the rest of society, who would find ways to harm themselves otherwise." Obviously, some drugs would have to be restricted in any case. Narcotics have too much potential for abuse, and antibiotics, if overused, could create drug-resistant bacteria. Besides those two classes of drugs, there are many drugs out there that may significantly improve people's lives but are hard to access.
My question is: do you think that controls on prescription drugs are too restrictive? Should individuals be allowed more freedom to make decisions that affect their own lives, or does government hold a responsibility to protect the individuals in society who might potentially harm themselves if drugs controls were removed?
David Nadermann
20 comments:
I think the restrictions they have on drugs needs to be strict. Working the medical field I see hundreds of patient that are addicted to pain meds.I blame that alot on the doctors who don't treat them the right way and get them the help they need. Instead they just call in the meds for them to pick up.Pain meds I think need to be followed more and the docrot who prescribes them. We have dying patients that can't get pain meds but an addict can. What's wrong with this picture??? Dawn Smith
I think we have good laws set in order so that medications aren't abused, i understand the idea of keeping narcotics and antibiotics restricted still but there is a reason we go to see the doctor. It is a liability to them but that's there job, if there hesitant to prescribe you something that's a serious issue on their part. not to mention those who struggle paying for a doctor's appointment must struggle for medication as well because it's not cheap at all! Strep throat medicine for 2 weeks is like 75$ without insurance, similiar to quick doctor's appt.
Matt Funk
I say GOOD. at least we know they work, on the other hand i say it is BAD do to the fact that some times certain drugs and smaller dosages can make all the difference. not to mention the fact that drugs that are prescription only can be VERY expensive.
I feel as if the laws are where they need to be. We need to have strict policies on pharmaceuitcal drugs because people have a tendency to abuse them. As for looking up your own symptoms thats not really a good technique because so many illnesses have the same symptoms. So many diseases have the same symptoms of like a common cold and the only way to find out is if you go to a doctor and get tests done. Webmd is a great website too look up how to treat the flu or common colds and stuff like that, or other less severe stuff but when people rely on it too much they may be missing the bigger picture and might have something a lot more severe than just a common cold or flu, i might actually be cancer or something of that sort that needs to have tests done. Doctors are there for a reason, im not saying you have to go to the doctor every time your sick, but if we were aloud to prescribe or own medicine then we might be taking the wrong medication and make things worse, thats the the doctors are for and thats why they went to school for 12 years, is to do that for us.
Kevin McBride
getting prescription drugs isnt restrictive at all, doctors push drugs so they can get paid. i can walk down the hallway at my old high school and announce that i want some addy or any other kind of drug and at least ten people would be telling me to call them later that day. i think they need more restrictions not fewer. people are getting their hands on drugs way to easily. sam tomson
I believe that people who are concerned for their own health , ought to seek the probes on the medical frontier ,and ask them if they feel people who are not responsible should ever get the chance to take or even to sample any drugs? True enough they need to understand that they have to take the drugs to help support their own illnesses, but at the same time they are looking at the possiblity of someone who is wrong catching a drug that they do need and using it to get high.
I think some control should be put on it, because people are and will get addicted to the drugs or pills. Its also good because we know the pills and drugs are helping us. I think if the patient is really sick they should get the pill or drug what ever they need. If this patient is just wanting these pills to use them as drugs i don't think so thats not teaching them anything. Your just hurting that person even more and makeing them more sick.
Aubrey Welch
I don't believe that the restrictions on drugs aren’t too strict. American’s in general have a drug problem so therefore laws have been put in place to stop that. I do understand that doctor appointments can get expensive, but I also get that people lie a lot so that they can get put on drugs that they don't need, so therefore doctors are needed to help regulate who gets what, and that is the way it should be.
Melody Nelligan
No, I don't think that restrictions on prescription medication are to strict. If the government was to loosen up, it would be easier for more people to abuse drugs. Yes, you can go on the internet and look up symptoms, but their can be some you can not detect or would not pay attention to. Some illnesses can have the same symptoms but one thing can be sightly different. Things that the government feel we can handle ourselves, we can get over the counter. Diagnosing yourself for one and taking medicine for it when it is something else--can be dangerous. You need to go to the doctor sometimes, so they can use special equipment to diagnose certain things. I don't feel our freedom is being violated, because you still have the right to say yes or no when it come to the medical attention you receive.
Brittany Williams
Yes, I think the drug laws are too restrictive. We see in so many cases, including this one, that the government doesn't believe the everyday Joe is smart enough to make his own decisions. I mean, some laws (seat belt law, for one) are condescending to the point of being insulting. You might as well call a grown man a child to his face.
Same with this issue. I know many people who know more about drugs than most medical professionals, but they have to pay the expense and waste the time of going through the middle man to get what they, or their loved ones, need. Why? Is it to keep the dumb-downed public safe? Os this more of an economical issue supported by the big $$ of pharmaceutical companies?
Everyone knows that many doctors get kickbacks from pharm reps, so could it be that the medical field doesn't want to lose that money?
James Koltz
Drug control should not be reduced because its there for precaution. There are people who get medication sometimes and don't need it but they go and give it to someone else for their addiction. The fact that the internet is so accessable now individuals can find out how they can treat their illness or affliction without leaving their home. Many times if they can't recieve the meds they want they try to find a different way to go around the doctors orders.
S.Cooper
There is a reason why doctors have to make sure that a person really needs the medication. There are so many people that are addicted to different medication that doctors can't just let anyone come in and say they need this medicine.
Sarah Albin
I think doctors should be the only ones to prescribe medication. If they don't do tests for a complete diagnosis, they brought that onto themselves. My uncle bought medication online and became addicted. He was the last person we expected to be addicted. If the government gave us too much control, we would be going crazy. We need to be restricted with certain things. Medication and abortion should be the first.
Samantha Odendaal
I think the restrictions that are put on drugs is one of the good things that the government does. The human race has a tendency to abuse many freedoms that are given to them. We need these restrictions because many people would become addicts or misdiagnose our problems.There are many programs out like traveling clinics and medicare through public aid that will give you assistance to see a professional who has had the proper schooling to better diagnose your problem and who has also seen many cases similar to your own.
I feel it's good to have restrictions on drugs because a lot of people have over dose in meds by having so many refills. If some one is in that much pain or that sick they need ta let a doctor treat them, but soetimes people die because doctors has given them to much of their own meds. It's really hard to say but having restictions are very safe in most cases.
Restrictions on perscription drugs should definitely be strict. Nobody should be able to get any kind of drug when they want it just because they feel as though they need it, they are called perscription drugs for a reason. If people were able to get drugs when they wanted, people would begin to abuse that right, not all people would but there would be a solid number of people who would.
Kenneth East
I think it doesn't matter how strict they make the rules. People always find a way to get things so if the desperate want them they are going to get them. personally I think the government has to much control over everything but with that said the restrictions on somethings are good to have.
Although I am positive that there is a lot of money weighing in on decisions that are made about medicine, too much freedom with any kind of chemicals/medications can be dangerous. Drug companies are big money makers, and love the restrictions that help them keep control. Health care costs in general are out of control, with medicine being a huge part.
Think about what would happen though, if people could simply go buy what they wanted. Overmedication for the people who think, "If a little does good, a lot will do better." Drug interactions for mixing conflicting medications would be fatal. Medication without some type of control would be dangerous. Doctors go to school for years to learn how drugs/medication works for or against the human body. How do we think that a 2 minute internet search gives us all we need to know? Even today, with all the regulations in place, medications are often recalled due to quality control or side effects that arise. Without control, protecting people from themselves would be extremely difficult.
As far as making medications more affordable, there are possibilities. Drug companies have huge markups, just check out their financial records. Of course, liability is a problem they take, but even after that, there is plenty of room for discounts. Some drug companies as well as chains like Walmart and Walgreens are working to help cut costs of some more popular drugs affordable.
Restrictions? Yes, they could be revised some, but I still think that someone must hold protective control in some fashion.
Joann Logsdon
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