LOOKING RX DRUG ABUSE IN THE EYES

Two-day Talk Aims To Educate Local Officials

Travis Beard's stepfather didn't know what OxyContin was until the day it killed his 15-year-old son.

"I don't know why he did it -- somebody must have told him it was the thing to do," the San Luis Obispo man, who asked that his name not be published, told a packed room of law enforcement and health professionals Thursday.  "All I know is that I lost my son.  He had a lot to live for, and I cry every day."

In March, his wife discovered that their son had fatally overdosed on oxycodone, the active ingredient in the prescription drug OxyContin, when he did not wake up to get ready to go to San Luis Obispo High School.

The county Coroner's Office confirmed that Beard likely swallowed just one OxyContin pill.  It's not known where he got it or at what dosage.

On Thursday and today, about 90 people from throughout the state are convening in Avila Beach to talk about Beard's death and the larger issue it illustrates -- that prescription drug abuse is a growing problem in San Luis Obispo County.  The event was the first of what's planned to be a series of annual forums on the topic.

Until now, police, pharmacists, prosecutors, counselors and legislators have talked informally, but not collectively, about the extent to which the problem exists locally.

In the first four months of this year, according to the county Coroner's Office, 11 people died of drug overdoses.  That number excludes suicides.  Eight of them had pharmaceutical drugs in their bodies.  Coroner Detective Steve Harris did not have comparable data from last year on Thursday, but he thinks it would show a significant jump in 2004.

In some recent years, more people died in San Luis Obispo County from overdoses of prescription drugs than all street drugs combined, District Attorney Gerald Shea told the group.

Tyler Burtis, the commander of the county's Narcotics Task Force, said the purpose of the symposium is "education, and for all the disciplines to talk about it.  No.  2 is to network, to get everyone in the same room and talk about it.  If you don't know something, you don't know what to look for."

Douglas Owsley of the state Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement pointed out that law enforcement personnel begin their careers as generalists, not specialists.  They need to be given specific knowledge about prescription drugs such as OxyContin to effectively recognize abuse, he said.

The problem isn't accurately reflected in arrest statistics because it is underreported, according to Max Houser of the National Drug Intelligence Center.  If someone faced a series of drug charges, for example, some of those charges could be dropped in a plea agreement.

And if statistics don't reflect a problem, Houser said, agencies don't allocate enough resources for it.

Arroyo Grande pharmacist Bret Miller, head of the Central Coast Counties Pharmacists Association, has known the problem existed for years.  In his 20-year career, he said, none of the arrests he knows of involving prescription drug abuse ever made it to court for prosecution, and he wants that to change.

"I've got young kids; we all do," he said.  "And there are people out there willing to make money ( on prescription drug abuse )."

Burtis, of the Narcotics Task Force, said he hopes those attending the symposium will continue to discuss the issue at least four times a year.

Tribune Staff Writer Jeff Ballinger contributed to this report.