The DEA is a federal law enforcement agency whose mission it is to fight the war on drugs. The Washington Post recently reported that the DEA has heightened its efforts to stop the illegal distribution of drugs and that this has had an impact on the lives of seniors in some hospices.
Stricter enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act is making it harder for seniors to get pain relief from drugs like morphine and Percocet, says the news agency.
Some elderly men and women have even been denied these medications because its presence in retirement living communities has led to drug theft.
The White House has been urged to instruct the DEA to adjust its operation so that the elderly can receive the care they need, but the Post says nursing home administrators have been plagued with this issue for quite some time.
According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, medications like morphine are prescribed to relieve moderate to severe pain. Most of the time, they are given to patients who expect to experience serious discomfort for the duration of the day.
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