Welcome to the FSMB

The Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) is a national non-profit organization representing the 70 medical boards of the United States and its territories. The FSMB's mission is to continuously improve the quality, safety and integrity of health care through developing and promoting high standards for physician licensure and practice.

New Study Finds Little Evidence of Physician Sanctions for Prescribing Pain Medications

A new study by the FSMB, the National Association of Attorneys General and the Center for Practical Bioethics suggests physician concerns over publicized prosecutions for prescribing pain medications are disproportionate to actual numbers of legal and regulatory actions. The study's findings, published in the September 9 issue of Pain Medicine, include:

• 725 physicians were identified as having been prosecuted or sanctioned for such violations during the eight-year timeframe, or only about 0.1 percent of nearly 700,000 practicing patient care physicians in the United States.

• Most of the patient care doctors identified in such cases were primary care physicians rather than specialists in other fields, including pain medicine.

• In 2005 and 2006, the Drug Enforcement Administration reported having investigated an average of only four to five doctors per state each year for possible criminal offenses connected with improper prescribing or handling of pain medications.

The study continues the FSMB's support of the Balanced Pain Policy Initiative with the Center for Practical Bioethics and the National Association of Attorneys General. More