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Investigation Finds That Veterans Are Dying Of Overmedication

Arash Zandi |
September 20, 2013 | 3:44 p.m. PDT

Executive Producer

Tablets (Flickr/Wikimedia Commons)
Tablets (Flickr/Wikimedia Commons)
After serving their country and fighting in wars, veterans are returning home safe and sound, only to die by the hands of large doses of medication that have been accidentally overprescribed. CBS News investigated and found that veterans are losing their lives due to the practice of overmedication at a much higher rate than the general public.

READ MORE: Veterans Wait Longer For Benefits Under Obama

One such victim was 35 year old Army Spc. Scott McDonald who was diagnosed with chronic back pain. VA doctors in Columbus, Ohio prescribed him nine different kinds of medications, including a narcotic called Percocet. One morning, his wife Heather found him dead in his bed. His death was ruled accidental due to overmedication from the combined effects of five of his medications.

A doctor at a Veteran Affairs branch reported that supervisors instructed them to sign off on prescriptions for patients that they had never met. According to VA records, the number of patients have increased by 29 percent, but prescriptions for narcotics have dramatically increased in comparison by 259 percent.

Read the full story here.

 

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