DOJ, DEA to Tighten Quotas for Commonly Abused Opioids

The Justice Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration are proposing a major cut in production of the most commonly abused opioids in 2019.

The proposal would reduce 2019 manufacturing quotas for the six most frequently misused drugs — oxycodone, hydrocodone, oxymorphone, morphine, fentanyl and hydromorphone — by an average of 10 percent compared to 2018 quotas.

 “According to the National Prescription Audit, we have already made significant progress in reducing prescription rates over the past year,” said Attorney General Jeff Sessions in a joint DOJ/DEA statement.  “Cutting opioid production quotas by an average of 10 percent next year will help us continue that progress and make it harder to divert these drugs for abuse.”