Diverted Pharmaceuticals

In Maine the drug threat posed by diverted pharmaceuticals, primarily OxyContin and Dilaudid, rivals that posed by heroin. In addition, federal, state, and local law enforcement officials report that methadone diversion and abuse have increased significantly. Some methadone abusers combine the drug with powdered cocaine. Other pharmaceuticals frequently abused in Maine include Percocet, Ritalin, Vicodin, and Xanax.

Treatment statistics and medical examiner data reflect the magnitude of the abuse of opiate-based diverted pharmaceuticals in Maine. According to the Maine Office of Substance Abuse, the number of treatment admissions for other opiates and synthetics (excluding heroin) increased from 571 in SFY2000 to 1,030 in SFY2002. (See Table 1 in Overview section.) Further, a report issued by the Maine Office of Substance Abuse, the State Attorney General, and the Chief Medical Examiner on December 27, 2002, indicates that the increase in statewide drug deaths from 33 in 1997 to 90 in 2001 primarily was attributed to prescription drug abuse. According to the 2002 MYDAUS, 10.7 percent of twelfth grade students in Maine reported having abused prescription drugs in the past month.

Diverted pharmaceuticals are readily available throughout Maine. Thirty-eight of the 42 law enforcement respondents to the NDTS 2002 in Maine reported the availability of diverted pharmaceuticals as high or medium. According to MDEA, state and local task force officials seized 5,274 dosage units of diverted pharmaceuticals in FY2002. MDEA also reported that diverted pharmaceutical-related arrests (94) accounted for 18 percent of MDEA arrests (520) in FY2002. According to the DEA Portland Resident Office, OxyContin sold for $1 per milligram during the first quarter of FY2003. Prices for other diverted pharmaceuticals were not reported.

Diverted pharmaceuticals typically are obtained in Maine through common diversion techniques including prescription fraud, improper prescribing practices, "doctor shopping," and pharmacy thefts. However, some diverted pharmaceuticals are transported into the state from Canada by local independent dealers in private vehicles or by couriers on foot. Some local independent dealers and abusers purchase diverted pharmaceuticals, particularly OxyContin, over the Internet and have the drugs shipped to Maine, primarily via package delivery services.

Caucasian local independent dealers are the principal distributors of diverted pharmaceuticals in Maine. Many of these dealers abuse prescription drugs as well. Diverted pharmaceuticals typically are distributed from private residences, bars, and other public areas.

Law enforcement officials throughout the state report an increase in the number of thefts and burglaries related to prescription drug abuse. On June 18, 2002, a pharmacy in Naples, Maine, was burglarized and more than 5,000 dosage units of prescription drugs, including 1,000 doses of OxyContin, were stolen.

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