OxyContin Abuse and Diversion and Efforts to Address the Problem

Abstract

Representative Frank R. Wolf, Chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State, and the Judiciary, Committee on Appropriations; and Representative James C. Greenwood, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Committee on Energy and Commerce, requested that the U.S. Government Accounting Office (GAO) investigate OxyContin Abuse and Diversion. The GAO is the audit, evaluation and investigative arm of Congress. On December 23, 2003, the GAO submitted a 57 page report to the Representatives describing the outcomes of the investigation.

The full report includes appendices that describe the scope and methodology of the investigation, summaries of FDA changes to the original approved OxyContin label, databases used to monitor abuse and diversion of OxyContin and oxycodone, and comments from the FDA and DEA. This special report is an abstract of the GAO report and includes the conclusions and recommendations for action form the full report.

Key Words:

• Opioid
• narcotic
• diversion
• abuse
• oxycodone
• OxyContin
• FDA
• DEA
• GAO Congress
• risk management