VA Cites Drop in Opiate Prescriptions, but Some Lawmakers Skeptical of Progress

Veterans Affairs officials told House lawmakers today that the department had reduced the number of veterans receiving opiates by 20,000 since October after a Center for Investigative Reporting story revealed that VA prescriptions for four highly addictive opiates – hydrocodone, oxycodone, methadone, and morphine – had surged by 270 percent between 2001 and 2012.
 
 
 
  Reported by ABCNews.com 9 hours ago.