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Sitting with a headache in his room, an Airman contemplates whether or not to take pain medication that was prescribed to him for a tooth extraction several months ago.
He decides it’s pain medication, and he’s suffering from pain, so what harm can there be. The next day, the Airman submits to a random drug test and shows up positive; his career now hangs in the balance.
People testing positive from misuse of prescription and over-the-counter medication are becoming a common occurrence around the Kaiserslautern Military Community and throughout the Air Force.
“The numbers are on the rise,” said Alex Tremble, Ramstein Drug Demand Reduction program manager. “They have jumped up at least 40 to 50 percent within the last year. And, it’s not just here; it’s in the States as well.”
Misuse defined
According to Capt. S. Daniel Colton, 86th Airlift Wing Judge Advocate assistant staff judge advocate, “the Uniformed Code of Military Justice states it is illegal to wrongfully use controlled substances. Wrongful in its basic definition is without a legitimate medical reason. Having a prescription for a specific issue is a valid medical reason.”
To use medication for anything other than its intended purpose or other than prescribed is considered to be misuse, illegal and punishable by the UCMJ. “The prescription itself is going to expire six months after it’s written … that’s federal law,” said Maj. Crystal Price, 86th Medical Group chief of pharmacy services. “Keeping the pain medication in your possession past its intended use will set up the potential for breaking that rule for which the medication was intended. [Saying] ‘I didn’t know the rules; I didn’t know that,’ is not an excuse for misuse. You knew it was given to you for your tooth extraction, muscle tear or surgery. The fact that you’re saving it instead of getting rid of it is putting you in the position to be at risk.”
Drug trafficking
Airmen can also find themselves in another dilemma if they share medication.
“If you give medication to your friends or sell it, that’s drug trafficking; it’s a federal offense,” said Major Price. The excuse of “my friend gave it to me” doesn’t work either.
“The first thing that happens when you test positive on a drug test is it goes to a medical reviewer to see if you were prescribed the medication,” said Capt. Bob Greiman, 86th Medical Operations Squadron Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention and Treatment Program officer in charge. “If it’s not in your medical records, it can create some problems for you.”
According to Major Price, every Airman should know what is being given to them whether prescribed or over the counter to avoid the risk.
Over-the-counter medications
As with other European countries, some things can be obtained legally in Germany. However, this doesn’t mean we can use them as military members.
“In Germany, there are certain medications you can buy over the counter that you can only get by prescription in the States,” Captain Colton said. “If it’s on the controlled substance list, it’s a controlled substance whether you get it in the U.S. or in Germany. If you’re in the military and you use it, you’ve still violated the law. You’re always under the UCMJ, and you can still be prosecuted for wrongful use.”
While there is no list of banned items for the Air Force, U.S. Code Title 21 Section 812 lists the types of controlled substances considered illegal. This list, as well as other information on illegal drug use, can be found on the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s website at http://www.justice.gov/dea/pubs/csa/812.htm.
According to Captain Colton, if a member is prosecuted under the UCMJ for wrongful use, they could face up to a dishonorable or bad conduct discharge, confinement and total forfeitures of pay and
allowances.
The easiest way to avoid being in this predicament is as easy as one, two, three … dispose. German law is specific, and medication can’t be dumped in the toilet or thrown away at home. That’s why in the pharmacy lobby area, there is a medication drop box under the trophy case to dispose of old or left-over medication.
Ramstein legal and medical officials also offer this advice to help avoid medication misuse:
• Review product ingredients; know what you are taking.
• See your physician to get medication if you’re sick, in pain, etc. instead of buying over the counter.
• Let your physician know if you’ve come in contact with a controlled substance while on the job, so it can be documented in your medication profile that an accident occurred. Example: if you’re opening a box, and the substance inside is broken and gets on you.
• Only take medication for its intended purpose and for the prescribed dosage amount.
“You could be a really good Airman. The next thing you know, you’re standing in front of legal, having to explain why you used the drug,” Mr. Tremble said. “Don’t put yourself and your command at risk.”
