Fiscal Year 2008 Prescription Drug Monitoring Program

Since the beginning of FY 2002, Congress has appropriated funding to the U.S. Department of Justice to support the Harold Rogers Prescription Drug Monitoring Program. Prescription drug monitoring programs enhance the capacity of regulatory and law enforcement agencies to collect and analyze controlled substance prescription data through a centralized database administered by an authorized state agency. These programs are designed to help prevent and detect the diversion and abuse of pharmaceutical controlled substances, particularly at the retail level where no other automated information collection system exists.

The state of North Dakota is currently experiencing an increase in the abuse and sale of prescription drugs that has lead to a rise in criminal activity, personal injuries, and death. With the development of the North Dakota Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (NDPDMP), access to a prescription history on a suspect is made available immediately by gathering data from pharmacies and making it available to law enforcement, practitioners, and dispensers to help reduce doctor-shopping, pharmacy-shopping, and prescription forgery. Having been awarded $400,000 by the Bureau of Justice Assistance to assist and expand the use of NDPDMP, the North Dakota State Board of Pharmacy will fund training and support for law enforcement and prosecutors to better utilize the collected data and practitioners and pharmacists will receive increased training in identifying legitimate patients from drug seekers. In addition, funds will be used to create an interstate cooperative between Montana, South Dakota, and Minnesota by meeting with appropriate points of contact in each state. Colleges and universities will be encouraged to establish courses in motivational interviewing for medical, pharmaceutical, and law enforcement education, and a fellowship will be developed with the University of North Dakota to evaluate program effectiveness.

CA/NCF