Methadone Deaths

Why is there not a class action suit against the makers of Methadone....Even the FDA just issued a Public Health Advisory!!!

Current statistics show that nearly 3000 people a year die from methadone. These deaths are mostly happening to pain management patients within the first 10 days of taking initial dose. Most of these deaths are related to methadone prescribed with other medications that react as additives with methadone. Diversion of methadone is a serious problem because it lands this most deadly drug on streets. Statistics also state that methadone is contributing to more deaths nationwide then heroine and cocaine.

On June 24th 2006 I lost my fiancé (Ron) to this deadly drug prescribed by a physician with a combination of other medications that acted as additives to the Methadone. He had knee surgery and became addicted to the percocet he was prescribed. He checked himself into Greenleaf in Valdosta, GA for detoxification. Upon entering the facility he was drug tested and did not come up positive for opiates (he had stopped taking the percocet 4 days before entering the facility). On the fourth day in detox he died sometime between 2am and 1pm in the afternoon (he was never checked on in all of those hours). The night before he died he was complaining of migraines and vomiting, apparently the staff thought he was still experiencing withdrawals and was not concerned about these symptoms. The symptoms of methadone toxicity mimic withdrawal symptoms physicians and staff must be very cognizant of the complex properties and metabolization of methadone. There were many errors made in my fiancé’s death including the fact that he was given numerous amounts of additive medications such as benzodiazepines. He had only been taking percocet for about 4 months and according to the DSM IV he wouldn’t be an appropriate candidate methadone maintenance treatment.

It doesn't matter specific reasons for taking methadone but what does matter is that this medication is deadly and physicians need to more prudent in prescribing it as well as monitoring their patients while beginning treatment of any kind using Methadone. I'm not sure if Ron was given methadone for the sole purpose for detoxification from opiates or if it was a combination of pain relief associated with numerous surgeries and opiate addiction. Methadone is difficult to properly dose no matter what reason it's being used for and primarily relies on the patient’s indications of how they feel (assumedly they are being monitored). There are ways to make the administration of methadone safer, it's just a matter of putting the focus on this drug and the deadly consequences when administered incorrectly or not monitored.

Many people are dying unnecessarily at the hands of the physicians they turn to for help. Methadone deaths are rising throughout the country. Ron was 32 years old and has 2 children from a previous marriage that now do not have a father.

The other families and I have created a petition that will be forwarded to the FDA to implore them to Stop Methadone Deaths. Please see the petition and you can read the numerous stories of lives this drug has taken.


lot of love
melissa

My mother died from using this drug on September 15, 2006. She had chronic pain and so was on many different medications. She was prescribed 120 of the 5mg methadone pills on September 13.
She was sleeping when my father left, when he came home, she was gone. She hadn't even moved, so we assume she died in her sleep. She was only 56 years old and left so much family and friends. I was very close to my mother and am an only child, so this hurt me terribly. It's not right that the doctors and pharmacies can get away with prescribing this drug to someone already on different medications that they know it will react with.

The number of deaths due to this drug is completely ridiculous. I hate that other people have to go through pain like I have. I'm only 27 years old and my mother is gone. Both of us are going to miss out on so many things and 56 is very young to die.

I hope that somehow something can be done about this atrocity before more innocent people die.

I too have lost a loved one to the dangerous drug Methadone. My husband of one year died two months ago due to a lethel dose of methadone. Here I am 26 and a widow. All of my dreams for my future are shot due to methadone.
My husband was prescribed methadone as a break through medication for head pain. LD started the medication on Tuesday and i came home to find him dead in our bed on Friday. Four whole days on this drug and it killed him. To not look into this would be insane. Something has to be done. There are too many people dying that could still be with us if it was not for a singel little pill.

I hope that someone looks into this. There is no reason that a civil suit should not be brought up, at least looked into. How can people sit by and encourage doctors to prescribe something that is obviousely killing the innocent?

I lost my only child son, jamie pethel (23) on 09-04-06 from methadone/xanax combination. Through a criminal investigation, rumor has it that he bought 25 methadone pills from a lady the night before he died. She is on intense probation as we speak for sell and deliver a schedule II and III narcotic. She supposedly gets prescriptions from dr's for some kind of pain. In october of this year, a little over 1 month after my son died, this woman supposedly gave/sold another man methadone and he also died. Why are these dr's giving this drug out to people for them to sell? This woman is a convicted felon with numerous charges and can go to the clubs, drink, drive without a license, and sell her prescription meds. Does she sound like she needs methadone? She also has a 10 year old daughter that i have contacted DSS about and they saw no reason to open a case against her. Let me give you another example, I know a man that got 12 felony counts of possession with intent to sell and deliver, maintain a dwelling and was put on 3 years intense probation. This man has 7-8 prior DWI convictions and is in a wheelchair from the last of his DWI's. (hit a telephone pole while impaired) He gets a plea bargain and is sentenced on 2 counts and while he is required to attend treatment, pay probation fees, house arrest, etc, he does none except house arrest (he very seldom leave his house anyway) the superior court judge decides, after receiveing a probation modification request from the probation dept that probation serves no purpose for this man and takes him completey off probation after not even doing a year of his probation. This is the kind of thing that happens all the time. This man is where my son' body was found. 2nd death that has occured there from od. I have the records from all this and the probation modification reads " This man is a quad and probation serves no purpose". Needless to say, I went after my son's death to confront this judge and he would not meet with me. So, i sent him a letter explaining about this man that he let off probation. He is not a quad, he is a paraplegic and there is a huge difference. He sells his prescription meds, alot of kids in there late teens and 20's hang out there and he works on cars, lawnmowers, gets in his vechicle and rides to the store for beer. (no license). What kind of BS is this? Our criminal justice system needs a overhaul. Along with these Dr's that are prescribing these dangerous meds. How about this? If you have any charges for selling medications, then you do not need them. This methadone is killing our loved ones left and right. How many more have to die before this drug is completely taken off the market? It takes a long time to get stats for how many it kills so we will probably not see how many this drug has killed until 2008-09. By then, all that will happen is it will be double that amount unless something can be done now. Mary Haynes

On October 2, 2005, my son Robbie Shelton died of an overdose of methadone and xanax. Just 3 days after his 25th birthday. In highschool Robbie was antidrug and antialcohol. His friends said that if they would drink a beer or even mention it, he would tell them they were stupid. Robbie was raised in a christian home. He married his high school sweetheart on Nov 3, 2003. Robbie was the last person in the world who I thought would become addicted to drugs.
In February of 2005, I found out that Robbie had a drug problem. We started our fight then. Robbie went into rehab in September on a mental hygiene warrant. There was no treatment center available in our area for voluntary commitment. They kept Robbie 5 days. He died 3 weeks later.
After Robbie's death, I started researching the drug problems in our area and I was totally appalled at the number of deaths from drug overdose that have occurred in our small county, and the number of deaths attributed to methadone. When I read the dangers of methadone and the availability of the drug, especially in our state it angered me even more. In WV, methadone isn't state regulated. In the methadone clinics, the take home is up to 30 days, you don't have to prove physical dependence to start the program, there is no duration of treatment and so forth. the clinics are for profit, so why would they want anyone to leave the program. Then the clients of the clinics sell their take homes to obtain other drugs. This drug then gets in the hands of uneducated people and they take it with other drugs and they die.
I feel that our battle with the drug abuse had just started. Robbie was trying to get help, but as with other addictions, it was so hard. I feel that Methadone ended his life before we could even begin to fight.
There are so many young people listed in the obituaries in our local newspaper and most of them are due to drug overdose.
Logan county has been listed as the number one county for drugs, alcohol and tobacco. That is unreal, since our population is so low. We have a methadone clinic only about 30 minutes away in mingo county. Also, West Virginia has been recorded as having 4 times the deaths from drug overdose per capita. Why has no one filed a class action law suit against this company? Why has no one held them accountable? Any other company that has been attributed to so many deaths would not only be held accountable, but the drug would have been pulled off the market. Why has this not happened?
My life has totally changed because of this drug. My son's young life is over because of this drug. His young wife is a widow because of this drug. Methadone kills. period. And the numbers continue to increase daily. Someone must speak out for the victims. someone must stop this before it kills a whole generation.

My brother died on December 14th from methadome.He was only 18 years old and he had just had a baby boy that was a few months old.There were whinesses of who Bobby had bought this from but they got nothing for this and are still around selling just about anything.Also about 6 months later a mutual best friend of Bobby's and I passed away from drinking liquid methadome...also bought that from Bobby's dealers aunt! And she got in no trouble also...they live on the same street! Messed up! We have went to the police and to the states attorney's office and keep getting ran around.His son will never know how much his daddy loved him and how his daddy was around him. Bobby and Dave both died in there sleep from methadome overdose that they got from a few meth-addicts.They were good people they were just young and didn't realize that they would not wake up when they took this stuff.If Bobby had read a few of these stories on here as i have today, he would have known better.He was only 18 for God's sake! We need to make people aware of this drug!! About a month before bobby passed he tried to find someone to talk to or a triangle center to help him because he wanted to stop doing drugs period.They couldn't even talk to him.They just put him on a long waiting list.About 6 months after my brother passed away they called saying that they could get him in now... and we told them it was too late.

I am so sorry for your loss. Please see our website at harmd.org or you can email me at [no email links]

Melissa

i lost my brother in may 2008, due to methadone and zanx. but one of the biggest problems with this drug is mixing other drugs with it. methadone reacts with over 300 differnt type of drugs. including over the counter drugs. differnt food and drinks also react to methadone. the list goes on and on. my brother was on methadone for 5 years, but he made one big problem. it was mixing alcohol with it. the reason methadone is gving out by of minnie doctors, is due to the cost. its a cheat drug for the insurance companys.

It is real sad that the manufacturer of the drug methadone doesn't have more side effects listed and that their has not been any Lawyers to start any Class Action Lawsuits against the Manufacturer's of the medication. I have taken the drug for the past 6 years and have suffered hair loss, loss of teeth, loss of sex drive due to no or low testosterone levels due to taking the medication, along with severe skin problems pn my legs, hands and arms due to using the medication. I need for anyone that knows of any lawyers who I can contact concerning the severe side effects I have experienced to contact me if they are able to help me with receiving compensation for the pain and suffering I have experienced from taking this medication, In addition to the things I have just listed, Iam also suffering from Severe Depression from the side effects of the medication and how it has taken my hair out, no sex drive drive due to the low testosterone levels and other side effects mentioned above.