Center for Network Therapy on 3/19/2019
WEST ORANGE, N.J., March 19, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — As the addiction epidemic continues to spread, it is ensnaring more women. 19.5 million women over age 18 (15.4%) used illicit drugs in the past year; 8.4 million misused prescription drugs; and, the growth rate of addiction to heroin for women has outpaced that of men since 2003. Dr. Indra Cidambi, Medical Director, Center for Network Therapy (CNT), commented, “There are several reasons why women are prone to get addicted faster than men, but the primary reason is biology.”
“A majority of women with addiction issues have suffered sexual abuse earlier in their life, which caused mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, or PTSD later,” said Dr. Cidambi. “And many slipped unknowingly into addiction while trying to self-medicate, often with devastating consequences to their health and lifestyle.”
A woman’s body contains less water than men (drugs/alcohol in the system are less diluted), more fatty tissue (higher retention) and lower levels of specific enzymes (slower break down of substances). “As a result, women can progress faster to addiction than men as their bodies are exposed to the substance longer and at higher concentration levels,” Dr. Cidambi adds.
Women experience depression and anxiety at higher rates. As per the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, from puberty to age 50, women are twice as likely as men to have an anxiety disorder, and they occur earlier. “Often these disorders go undiagnosed,” stated Dr. Cidambi. “This leads to a level of self-medication through illegal drugs and alcohol.” Continue reading →
The Indiana Lawyer on 3/19/2019 by Katie Stancombe
An inmate ordered to serve the reminder of his sentence after violating his probation lost his argument against several probation officers involved in his case when the Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed the officers were protected under quasi-judicial immunity.
After Randy Thornton pled guilty to Class C felony possession of cocaine, he was ordered to begin his two-year probation on Aug. 6, 2007. The expected expiration date was set for Aug. 6, 2009. However, in February 2008, Thornton was sentenced an additional three years for an unrelated case under Cause 28198.
Probation officer Eric Lee informed the sentencing court under the initial cause about the new sentence, noting that Thornton’s probation would resume under the initial cause once the executed portion was completed. Lee’s supervisor, Dianna Johnson, approved and signed the memo, but no action was taken on it by the sentencing court.
Then in August 2010, additional probation officers Matthew Pietrzak and Stephanie Buttz filed and reviewed a notice of probation violation on Thornton, informing the sentencing court that he had been arrested and charged with a new offense earlier that month. They noted that Thornton’s probation was additionally paused while he served time for his conviction in Cause 28198.
The sentencing court later found Thornton had violated his probation, despite his contention that the 2010 arrest did not violate the terms of his probation because it had ended in August 2009. He was then ordered to serve the remainder of his previously suspended sentence.
However, a split Indiana Supreme Court reversed the dismissal of his claims, finding that his complaint had stated a claim for relief under section 1983 because the complaint alleged that Pietrzak, Buttz, Lee, and Johnson had taken actions “which constituted ‘unconstitutional deprivations of liberty and violations of due process.’”
On remand, the trial court granted the officers’ motion for summary judgment on the grounds that they did not deprive Thornton of his constitutional rights and that they were immune from liability under section 1983 as quasi-judicial officers.
Thornton appealed in Randy L. Thornton v. Matthew Pietrzak, Stephanie Buttz, Eric Lee, and Dianna Johnson, 18A-PL-1356, specifically asserting they were not entitled to quasi-judicial immunity because they exceeded the scope of their authority as probation officers by failing to maintain accurate records and providing the sentencing court in Cause 81612 with knowingly false information.
He also asserted that because the sentencing court vacated his probation violation, the officers were not acting in furtherance of a valid court order when they filed the probation violation in August 2010.
“However, the sentencing court, in vacating the probation violation, did not find that Appellees acted in violation of the original sentencing order or that they exceeded their statutory authority in filing the notice of probation violation,” Judge James S. Kirsch wrote.
“The sentencing court, instead, found that it was unclear whether Thornton’s probation was tolled when he served his sentence in Cause 28198 and that there was no caselaw on the issue. Because of this ambiguity, Appellees did not knowingly file a false probation violation and keep inaccurate records regarding the status of Thornton’s probation.
“To the contrary, they followed their statutory duty to notify the court when a violation of a condition of probation occurred pursuant to the original sentencing order in Cause 81612 and their belief that Thornton was still on probation at the time he committed new offenses because his probation had been tolled when he served an executed sentence in an unrelated case,” Kirsch continued.
The appellate court thus found that in filing the notice of probation violation, the officers were performing duties “considered an arm of the judicial officer who is immune” and therefore entitled to quasi-judicial immunity.
Similar article: “Case Clips: Thornton v. Pietrzak, No. 18A-PL-1356, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., March 19, 2019).
on 03/27/2019
In partnership with the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration/Division of Mental Health and Addiction, the Indiana Office of Court Services is accepting grant applications to provide financial assistance to counties using a Sequential Intercept Model (SIM) approach to enhance collaborative partnerships between the local criminal justice system and behavioral health care providers to address Opioid Use Disorders/Substance Use Disorders.
Information for training and the grant
The grant application is open to counties to support planning, implementation, or enhancement efforts to identify those involved in the criminal justice system with substance use and other mental health disorders. Grant activities must focus on one or more intercepts outlined in the Sequential Intercept Model, which brings together key stakeholders to develop a “map” that illustrates how people with substance use and mental health disorders come in contact with and progress through the local criminal justice system.
Grant applicants are strongly encouraged to attend a Justice Partners Addictions Response Training (Registration link below). Applicants that do not attend this training must demonstrate an exemplary understanding of the SIM through prior training or other local collaborative initiatives.
Regional trainings will enhance collaborative approaches to respond to the needs of justice-involved individuals with a substance use and other mental health disorders. The trainings will allow criminal justice and behavioral health partners to assess treatment resources, gaps, and opportunities across their local justice systems. Training participants will:
- Analyze their local system practices to identify gaps, resources, and opportunities for identifying people with behavioral health concerns
- Develop a “map” that illustrates how people with substance use and other mental health disorders come in contact with and progress through the local criminal justice system
- Identify one or more interventions that can be implemented to increase access to treatment
Team registration must be initiated by local judiciary or the Chief Probation Officer
Registration for Team Training
The lead applicant for each grant application must be a member of the local judiciary.
Grant Application
The Indiana Lawyer on 3/19/2019 by Dave Stafford
Related Article: POPAI Submits an Amicus Curiae Brief with Court of Appeals
Holding that probation officers as court employees are entitled to cash payouts of unused paid time off at the time of their separation of employment, the Indiana Court of Appeals upheld a judgment in favor of a former Hendricks County probation officer.
The appellate panel affirmed a judgment of $11,075.26 in favor of Gwyn L. Green, who left her job after nearly 24 years and sought to cash in her 331 hours of accrued unused PTO. The Hendricks County Council rejected the request, voting 7-0 to deny it, citing to the county policy manual that says PTO would be paid only to eligible employees upon retirement or disability retirement.
Boone Superior Judge Matthew C. Kincaid ruled in Green’s favor in a judgment on the pleadings, and a panel of the COA affirmed Tuesday in Hendricks County, Indiana, et al. v. Gwyn L. Green, 18A-PL-2528.
“The trial court reached this conclusion holding that ‘The Hendricks County Courts, and not [the County] (fiscal body), sets the salary and controls the terms, condition, and privileges of Probation Officers,” COA Judge Patricia Riley wrote.
“(W)e hold that, as court employees, probation officers are entitled to a cash payout of unused PTO in accordance with the Court’s employee manual and the County is not entitled to sovereign immunity under the Wage Payment Statute,” Riley wrote for the panel.
The panel also noted that Hendricks County’s employee handbook explicitly noted its policies may not apply to court employees. The panel also noted that the judiciary typically treats PTO as deferred compensation.
“The Hendricks County Courts’ request, seeking an appropriation from the County to pay Green’s accrued and unused PTO,” Riley wrote, “clearly signaled that the courts considered the County’s PTO policy inapplicable to probation officers, as they are employees of the courts.”
An amicus brief in this case was filed on Green’s behalf by the Probation Officers Professional Association of Indiana, Inc.
Fox 59 on 3/14/2019 by Melissa Crash
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Stranded and in need of life saving support – imagine wanting to get addiction help, but simply not having a ride to get there. That’s one of the biggest challenges Hoosiers with addiction face. A new program is hoping to change that.
Indiana 211 is now a green light to vital care. That’s after they’ve noticed an alarming trend.
“As of today, we’ve completed a total of about 520 rides,” said Project Manager Seth Pennington.
Thousands of substance calls each year show people don’t have a ride to get to treatment.
“Most of them have said I would simply miss the appointment,” added Pennington.
With Indiana 211 now up and working, they say that’s not acceptable. Starting now, people can call 211. The person on the other line will connect them to a ride-sharing driver with Lyft, who will pick them up for their substance disorder appointment for free. They don’t even have to have a smart phone. Indiana 211 will take care of it for you.
Indiana 211 is able to provide this service thanks to a grant through the Department of Mental Health and Addictions with the state of Indiana. It’s a $40,000 grant and goes through the end of June of 2020. However, Pennington says eventually more money will be needed, since drivers aren’t just staying in Central Indiana.
“We’ve completed rides from Columbus, Indiana to Indianapolis,” said Pennington, “rides from Evansville, Indiana to Vincennes; rides from Lafayette, Indiana to Anderson, Indiana.”
Dianna Huddleston with Aspire Indiana says the need for free rides is critical.
“We’re serving almost 10,000 people, active patients we’re seeing every month,” said Huddleston. “They have the mental health or addiction issues, but they’re also dealing with employment issues and housing issues, so it’s very difficult.”
Aspire Indiana provides support to people with addictions, housing assistance, family services and more.
“I know we have consumers in both our Carmel and Noblesville office using it to get to group, to get to their individual treatment appointments and to even get to some of the community resources where they are getting treatment through the recovery community,” said Huddleston.
A free ride means more than just transportation. It’s independence.
“It gives people hope. That they can really, actually complete their treatment,” said Huddleston. “Now I’ve taken away one more barrier.”
Pennington added, “We had an individual who lived in Anderson, Indiana and knew there was a treatment facility they would qualify for in Lafayette. So, that individual had been waiting for almost a month and wasn’t able to get there. When this program went live, they were then able to get connected to treatment and we’re able to get admitted and they’re successfully in the program now.”
At this time, Indiana 211 can’t give rides to Medicaid or HIP patients.
Receipts are checked to make sure the program is used appropriately. So far, there haven’t been any issues. If someone were to take advantage of the free ride service, that individual would be removed from the service.
Journal Gazette on 3/17/2019 by Matthew LeBlanc
Felicia Patrick participated in Noble County’s Family Preservation Court and was able to keep her children after years of drug abuse.
The Noble County woman was using drugs – “pretty much anything,” but mostly meth. It was 2009, she’d just had a daughter, and another baby, a boy, was on the way.
The Indiana Department of Child Services took custody of her son before she could leave the hospital with him.
“That’s how bad it was,” Patrick, 30, said last week. “I knew then, I’m either going to die, I’m going to go to jail or I’m going to lose everything.”
Patrick is among thousands in Indiana who have transitioned from unhealthy and dangerous situations with the help of specialized courts designed to steer families from bad behavior and toward stability. She credits her faith and Noble Superior Court’s Family Preservation Court with providing her with therapy and the life skills necessary to stay sober and regain custody of her son.
Court leaders in Allen County hope they will soon have similar success stories to share.
Allen Superior Court launched its family-centered court – Family Recovery Court – on Feb. 14. Administrators say the program in which participants could spend more than a year is aimed at untangling a morass of problems parents face that can lead to breaking families apart.
Patrick later divorced, remarried and had another son. She has been sober since 2012.
“Once I realized that the people who were involved (with the court) were supportive and believed in me, it gave me confidence in myself,” she said. “I was so broken, so lost. I did not know how to lead a normal life.
“They gave me this treatment plan to teach me how. I would definitely say they gave me my life back.”
Family Recovery Court can help ensure families are kept intact through treatment, therapy, guidance, individual attention and encouragement, officials said.
“Drug abuse and addiction have an enormous impact on so many aspects of our community,” Judge Charles Pratt said in a statement announcing the creation of the court.
Pratt is administrative judge of Allen Superior Court’s Family Relations Division, where the new court is housed.
“The vast majority of these cases involve parents or guardians with substance abuse issues,” he added “Breaking the cycle and helping families recover demands a new way of doing business.”
Magistrate Sherry Hartzler, former chief legal counsel of the Allen County Department of Child Services office, said she began planning in 2017 for a family court.
Hartzler said she was seeing an increase in cases involving parents or guardians with substance abuse problems. She wanted to help the people who showed up in her courtroom keep their families intact, but there was little she could do.
Allen County had special courts, but no mechanism to help families fighting drugs or alcohol.
“I had this mother in front of me,” Hartzler said. “The mother was struggling with heroin or some opioid. I thought, ‘My God, if only she were involved in drug court.’”
Family Recovery Court is Allen County’s fifth problem-solving court, joining Drug Court, Mental Health Court, Re-entry Court and Veterans Court. It is the eighth established in Indiana, and officials in Delaware, Howard, Knox and Vigo counties are studying similar programs.
Family recovery courts handle civil cases for individuals who have not been charged with a crime.
Families are accepted into the local family court program after they have been found to have children in need of services – CHINS. The designation is used by the state for cases involving allegations of abuse or neglect.
Nearly 750 CHINS cases were filed in Allen County last year, and 818 cases were filed in 2017.
Administrators see themselves as part advocate, part helper and part cheerleader. Working with participants to kick addiction and keep families together can be a longer process than simply shuttling them through the court system, they say, but it’s beneficial in the long run.
Parents remain with their children and it reduces long-term costs to courts because participants are less likely to come back to court with similar cases.
The Justice Department report found that nearly 60 percent of problem-solving court participants did not quit and left programs successfully.
Indiana Supreme Court Justice Christopher Goff established an adult drug court and a family adult court – one of the first in the state in 2006 – in Wabash County when he was a judge there. He and others who have overseen problem-solving courts say just getting parties involved together more frequently is effective in changing behaviors.
More time away from the court can lead to more chances to engage in bad behavior such as relapse, experts say.
“What we found is that it’s a good way to use the convening power of the court to get everyone together,” Goff said. “It’s very efficient in that way.
“If you have everybody that you need (together), you can oftentimes come up with solutions that stop short of removing the child and keep them in their home. In my experience, there was no downside.”
A family court was put in place in Clark County in 2011, and program Director Iris Rubadue estimates participation has ranged from just a handful to more than 30 families. Nearly all of the cases involve drugs or alcohol, she said.
The program there includes providing access to therapy and incentives for participants – gift cards and extended time with children who have been removed – to complete the program. About 75 percent of participants who enter the program stay, Rubadue said.
“It’s totally non-adversarial,” she said. “It’s not punitive. I think problem-solving courts work. We can’t just put (participants) through the system. They’ll come back.”
Judge Steven Hagan agrees.
He oversees the family court in Noble County, where Patrick began her journey to sobriety and stability.
“It is more likely to work, rather than just cycling them through,” he said.
The Allen County family court is based on one in Grant County, where Judge Dana Kenworthy said participants are offered assistance but also required to be accountable for their actions.
“We planned for about three years before we started (in 2015),” she said.
Kenworthy said the program has grown to include “an alumni group” of former participants that helps encourage current participants.
Hartzler, the Allen County magistrate, said she met several times with Kenworthy to ensure everything was in place to begin the local family court, which so far has about five participants. The program will be limited to 35 through its first six months.
“Which is a drop in the bucket but to ensure the success in getting this started, it made sense to start small so we don’t fail by taking on too much all at once,” Hartzler said.
She credits officials and agencies including mental health counselors and guardians ad litem – someone appointed by the court to look out for the best interests of children.
Patrick, who got her children back for good in 2013, is now a board member for Noble House Ministries – where she lived when she was a Family Preservation Court participant.
“They all worked very closely to keep me on track,” she said.
Indiana State Police on 3/14/2019
Hendricks County – Wednesday, March 13, at 11:33 a.m., an Indiana State Trooper stopped a vehicle on Interstate 70 eastbound, near the 66 mile marker, for a traffic violation of following too closely. The driver of the vehicle was identified as Danny J. Luttrell II, 27, Indianapolis, Indiana, and a passenger in the vehicle was identified as Brandon M. Pierson, 27, also of Indianapolis, Indiana. During the trooper’s conversation with Luttrell and Pierson, he detected the aroma of, and observed criminal indicators.
A subsequent search of the vehicle discovered that Luttrell and Pierson were transporting approximately 250 pounds of marijuana and 50,000 vape cartridges that were filled with THC. The items were discovered in the cargo storage area of the box truck. The street value of the marijuana is estimated at 2.5 million dollars and the vape cartridges estimated value is one million dollars.
Luttrell and Pierson were returning to Indianapolis, Indiana, from Burbank, California.
Both Luttrell and Pierson were taken into custody and transported to the Hendricks County jail.
Arrested and Charges:
- Danny J. Luttrell, Indianapolis, Indiana
Dealing Marijuana Level 5 Felony
- Brandon M. Pierson, Indianapolis, Indiana
Dealing Marijuana Level 5 Felony
All criminal defendants are to be presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
on 3/19/2019 by Kristen Banschbach, Director of Community Corrections
(Website Administrator’s note: Board Members received the following email this week and I am publishing it here for your information. Karen)
The Indiana Department of Correction has received many challenges with the current timeline of the grants. We have analyzed the concerns and will begin a grant cycle based on a calendar year beginning in January 2020.
On 3/15/2019, we presented the idea to move the grant contracts to a calendar year to the Justice Reinvestment Advisory Council. With approval from the Commissioner and without concern of the council, we will be extending the FY2019 grant awards until 12/31/2019. On 4/1/2019, the instructions for the FY2019 amendment (which will allow the continuation of FY19 funding until 12/31/2019) will be emailed out. For those who do not wish to continue their FY2019 award, you will not be obligated and will need to provide in writing that the entity will not be renewing its award. Those instructions will be provided with the amendment on 4/1/2019.
This means that contract for the current applications, due in Intelligrants 3/31/19, will begin on 1/1/2020 through 12/31/2020.
The grant application deadline in Intelligrants remains 3/31/2019.
A visual for the timeline is attached (FY19-and-2020-Timeline) and the important dates are bulleted below. The important dates for the FY2019 current awards are shown on the lower half of the timeline. The planned timeline for the 2020 grant applications are shown on the top half of the illustration.
Important Dates:
Community Corrections & Justice Reinvestment Grants FY2019
4/1/2019
- IDOC sends 6 month extension amendment out to grantees for signature
5/31/2019
- Grantees return amendment
7/1/2019
- FY2019 6 Month Extension Amendment Begins
12/31/2019
- FY2019 Contract extension ends
Community Corrections & Justice Reinvestment Grants 2020
3/31/2019
- Grant Application due through IntelliGrants
April-July 2019
- IDOC Review, Scoring, Formula, & Pre-award recommendations
August 2019
September 2019
- Grant awards finalized and approved by the Commissioner and JRAC
10/1/2019
- IDOC sends 2020 contract out for signatures
11/15/2019
- Contract returned for signature
1/1/2020
We appreciate your support in making this change. A grant calendar cycle has been requested for many years. With IntelliGrants being a new system and the very limited timeline to implement this year’s awards, we wanted to be able to provide a more reasonable timeline to review and provide recommendations based on data. This will allow more opportunities to clarify requests and provide a formal opportunity on priority presentations through grant hearings.
The intent of this email is to provide the announcement that amendment information will be sent out on 4/1/2019 and the current payments will be extended by 6 months. In addition, the intent was to announce the proposed timeline for this cycle of applications and the movement to a calendar cycle. As always, we will provide more detailed instructions, dates, and new procedures on the milestones of the timeline as those dates approach.
Thank you,
Kristen Banschbach
Director of Community Corrections
on 3/18/2019 by Karen Oeding
I posted an article with a list of books recently and Members responded with some more. I thought you’d be interested in them.
Never Split the Difference, Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It
- Amazon
- Summary
- Check your local library. I found physical, electronic, and audio versions through Monroe County.
“Although not about probation officers, it has a lot of good reading that we can apply to our everyday communications with clients. ”
Please feel free to send me more titles ~ Karen (email: ContactUsatPOPAI@gmail.com
Business Insider on 2/23/2019 by Erin Brodwin
- On Saturday for the first time in its roughly two-year history, e-cigarette company Juul shared some limited data from a clinical trial with the press.
- In general, that kind of research is considered a key way to protect public health by ensuring a product does not cause undo harm.
- As a startup, Juul developed a reputation for aggressively marketing its dessert-flavored nicotine products to teens, some of whom may now be at a higher risk of using regular cigarettes, research suggests.
- Then last fall in a $13 billion deal, Juul became partially owned by the tobacco giant behind Marlboro cigarettes.
- The part of Juul’s study that was made public suggests its devices could be healthier than traditional burned cigarettes. It does not assess vaping’s overall health impacts or the issue of teen use.
Juul, a former Silicon Valley startup with a reputation for aggressively marketing its dessert-flavored e-cigarettes to teens, is now doing health research.
On Saturday the company, which is now partially owned by tobacco giant and Marlboro maker Altria, presented a poster summary of a clinical trial comparing people who exclusively used its devices against people who smoked traditional cigarettes. Juul presented the poster at an annual meeting for the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco and posted it online.
The poster is the first clinical research that Juul has shared publicly. The full Juul-sponsored study has not yet been made public, but Juul is preparing a manuscript for peer-review. Continue reading →
The Paper of Wabash County on 2/26/2019 by Joseph Slacian
Judge Amy Cornell
A loving wife and mother of three young children.
A woman with a strong faith in God.
A woman who strived to be fair to everyone.
A woman who left a legacy of love and courage.
A woman who was a rising star in the community.
Those are just some of the ways colleagues are remembering Wabash Superior Court Judge Amy Cornell. Judge Cornell, who served in the post for about 15 months, passed away on Tuesday, Feb. 19.
She was appointed to the post by Gov. Eric Holcomb in October 2017, replacing then Superior Court Judge Chris Goff, whom Holcomb appointed to the Indiana Supreme Court earlier in the year. She received her robe during a November 2017 ceremony.
“Amy was a smart, fair and dedicated judge, and a rising star in her community,” Gov. Holcomb told The Paper of Wabash County via email. “Our state and judiciary will feel her loss for years to come. Janet and I have moved the Cornell family to the top of our prayer list.”
Justice Goff, in a telephone interview with The Paper, said, “Amy personified all of the qualities you look for in a good judge. She was patient, kind, and had the courage to make tough decisions. More than that, she was simply a great person. She brought out the best in everyone she came into contact with. Even though her time on the bench was short, her service will positively impact many people for many years to come.” Continue reading →
Corrections One on 2/26/2019 by C1 Staff
(POPAI Website Administrator’s note: based on the Amazon summary and reviews I’m not all for #2 but the rest are worth checking out.
Update: I’ve started to hear from members with more titles you might enjoy. I’ll add as I hear more. ~ Karen)
To be a good officer, you need street smarts; to be a well-rounded officer, you need book smarts, too. With that said, here’s a list of 10 must-read books aimed at probation and parole officers. In here, you should find a wealth of information that will help you do your job not only more efficiently and effectively, but also more safely.
1. Civil Liabilities and Other Legal Issues for Probation/Parole Officers and Supervisors by Rolando V. del Carmen
An examination of the legal liabilities that probation/parole officers may be exposed to. Eleven chapters make up this monograph.
2. The Best Ever Book of Probation Officer Jokes: Lots and Lots of Jokes Specially Repurposed for You-Know by Mark Geoffrey Young
“The Best Ever Book of Probation Officer Jokes” is so unoriginal, it’s original. And, if you don’t burst out laughing from at least one probation officer joke in this book, there’s something wrong with you.
3. When Nobody’s Home: The Truth behind Drug & Alcohol Addiction Through the Eyes of a Probation Officer by Michael S. Oden
“When Nobody’s Home” uncovers and reveals the origins of drug dependency through the lives of individuals who have been impacted by drug dependency anywhere from 5 years to 35 years. Continue reading →
Yahoo Finance on 2/23/2019 by Adriana Belmonte
Opioid abuse in the U.S. is a crisis, so much so that President Trump declared the epidemic to be a public health emergency under federal law in October 2017 and signed bipartisan legislation to address the issue in October 2018.
Dr. Raeford Brown, a pediatric anesthesia specialist at the UK Kentucky Children’s Hospital and chair of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Advisory Committee on Analgesics and Anesthetics, attributes much of the problem to Big Pharma and shoddy regulation by the FDA itself.
“One thing is clear and that is that the motive of the pharmaceutical industry is to make a profit,” Dr. Brown told Yahoo Finance. “And one would hope that in having that profit noted that there would be due consideration to what is ethical and what is moral.” He added that pharmaceutical companies “put pressure on [doctors] to prescribe opioids for reasons that aren’t indicated and because of that, patients get hurt.”
At the same time, according to Brown, the FDA hasn’t “been doing enough to oversee Big Pharma, and I don’t think that they have for a long time.”
A look at U.S. opioid prescribing rates by county, 2017. Darker means more prescriptions. (Graphic: CDC)
‘Pharmaceutical companies reassured the medical community‘
Although awareness of the opioid crisis has only been gaining traction in recent years, Brown said that the perverse incentive structure behind the epidemic is something that many have been concerned about since the mid-90s. Continue reading →
The POPAI Membership Year runs from January through December. If you haven’t had the opportunity to renew your membership you may do so in several ways.
Online
By mail
Download and print the Application then mail a check to
Susan Rice Membership Coordinator, POPAI
c/o Miami County Probation
25 Court Street
Peru, IN 46970
Department or custom made invoices are available. Just e-mail Membership Services Coordinator Susan Rice or Website Administrator Karen Oeding at ContactUsatPOPAI@gmail.com
on 03/06/2019
Chief Administrative Officer Justin Forkner has selected IOCS Justice Services Deputy Director Mary Kay Hudson to be the new Executive Director of the Indiana Office of Court Services.
