Drug risks
Re “Prescription overdose,” May 18
The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy bears some responsibility for the rise in prescription overdose deaths. It has been pushing student drug tests without alerting schools and parents to their downside: urinalysis only deters marijuana use because synthetic pharmaceuticals exit the body quickly.
This information is readily available on the Internet. It’s one of the reasons the American Academy of Pediatrics opposes involuntary drug testing.
Urinalysis provides incentives for marijuana users to switch to harder drugs.
Robert Sharpe
Policy Analyst, Common
Sense for Drug Policy
Washington
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
