Op-Ed Doctors Prescribing Opioids in Good Faith Should Not Be Prosecuted

[thegreenhand]

Doctors Prescribing Opioids in Good Faith Should Not Be Prosecuted​

Maia Szalavitz
Scientific American
25 Feb 2022

On March 1 the Supreme Court will hear arguments in a case that could have an enormous impact on American medicine. The case, which involves combined appeals from two doctors, Xiulu Ruan and Shakeel Kahn, is intended to resolve an important question that has had a chilling effect on both pain and addiction care. If the court decides against these defendants, people in the U.S. who are in agony may be unable to get needed relief.

The legal issue is this: Must prosecutors prove that doctors accused of overprescribing controlled substances intended to act as drug dealers? Or can physicians unknowingly violate the standards of care so severely that they cross the line into criminal behavior?

Read the full article here.

 

[thegreenhand]

maia szalavitz with yet another thoughtful opinion piece