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Want painkillers? TN doctors are now checking your prescription history

1,768 views · Published 1 April 2013 · 0:56 · Indexed 22 October 2026

Channel: chattanooga times free press · 2013 · News & Politics

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Starting today, Tennessee doctors prescribing painkillers like hydrocodone and oxycodone will be required to check their patients' prescription history in an online database before signing prescriptions.
The new requirement -- which was signed into law last year -- is the state's latest effort to clamp down on Tennessee's prescription drug abuse epidemic.
Tennessee has some of the highest prescription drug abuse rates in the country. In 2011, more than 1,000 people died from prescription drug overdoses in Tennessee alone.
Now, if doctors determine a patient has deceived them to get controlled substances, they must report it to local law enforcement within five days. 
But doctors are concerned the new law will add a significant burden in an era of growing medical paperwork. And there are worries the extra work will cause some doctors to stop prescribing controlled substances altogether.

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