Sale of painkiller to be restricted amid teen craze

[PeeJay1959]

8 hours ago, Sphere said:

Sale of drugs should be restricted between 2pm - 5pm.

And with 500m of a school...

[jacko45k]

7 hours ago, JustNo said:

That is true enough, but if somehow you were caught with xanax by the BiB, especially if for some reason you bought 1,000, you could be in serious trouble. They'd probably just extort you anyway, but it won't be a happy situation.

 

Unless they only find 990 of them!

[TPI]

10 hours ago, harrry said:

As I said cost to the taxpayer...

THe medicine under the PPBS scheme has a cost of

1 the doctor's visit

2 the Pharacist proffessional fee

3 Government list price for the medication which is higher than normal retail.

 

the above three items are mainly  paid by the government.

Many (most doctors no longer bulk bill for people on Health Care Cards, they charge more.  Some still bulk bill for those on Pension cards.

 

The patient, has to pay  out of pocked a fee of 

The co-payment is the amount you pay towards the cost of your PBS medicine. Many PBS medicines cost a lot more than you actually pay as a co-payment.

From 1 January 2016, you pay up to $38.30 for most PBS medicines or $6.20 if you have a concession card. The Australian Government pays the remaining cost.

From 1 January 2016, pharmacists may choose to discount the PBS patient co-payment by up to $1.00. This is not mandatory and it is the pharmacist’s choice whether or not to provide a discount. The option to discount the co-payment does not apply for prescriptions which are an early supply of a specified medicine.

The amount of co-payment is adjusted on 1 January each year in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

Safety Net there is a safety net though of  On 1 January 2016, the Safety Net thresholds changed from $366.00 to $372.00 (for concession card holders) and from $1,453.90 to $1,475.70 (for all other patients). These increases include the usual annual CPI indexation. A similar increase has occurred each year for four years (commencing in 2006). This is thee amount a patient may have to pay up to a year,

Thanks for the information.

 

It still amazes me that the Thai government has banned the over the counter sale of Aspirin, any logical reason?? 

 

[harrry]

3 minutes ago, TPI said:

Thanks for the information.

 

It still amazes me that the Thai government has banned the over the counter sale of Aspirin, any logical reason?? 

 

 

3 minutes ago, TPI said:

Thanks for the information.

 

It still amazes me that the Thai government has banned the over the counter sale of Aspirin, any logical reason?? 

 

yes.

Giving asprin to children less than 15 years old risks http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/reyes-syndrome/basics/definition/con-20020083 and aparently Thais are at risk for this.

It also has risk of gastric bleeding.

 

[brewsterbudgen]

6 minutes ago, TPI said:

Thanks for the information.

 

It still amazes me that the Thai government has banned the over the counter sale of Aspirin, any logical reason?? 

 

 

I bought 3 bottles of low-dose aspirin OTC at the Central pharmacy (Chitlom) yesterday.

[chiang mai]

2 minutes ago, brewsterbudgen said:

 

I bought 3 bottles of low-dose aspirin OTC at the Central pharmacy (Chitlom) yesterday.

 

81 mg aspirin (Aspent) is widely available, used by many as anti-coagulants.

 

What few people know is that 500/81= 6.

[uptoyoumyfriend]

i took tramadol ,which is an opiate, for about a week after a painful accident  and my stomach burnt from ibuprofen  which needs to be taken with food.when i stopped i got very itchy like inside the bones  ,bad sleeping too.very addictive stuff....but very good painkiller especially when combined with paracetamol.not available over the counter else where!

[JustNo]

1 hour ago, uptoyoumyfriend said:

i took tramadol ,which is an opiate, for about a week after a painful accident  and my stomach burnt from ibuprofen  which needs to be taken with food.when i stopped i got very itchy like inside the bones  ,bad sleeping too.very addictive stuff....but very good painkiller especially when combined with paracetamol.not available over the counter else where!

Tramadol is a synthetic opiate and to my knowledge the only opiate that is also an antidepressant because it doubles up as an SSRI. Taking it regularly for long periods and then stopping abruptly can cause serotonin syndrome and seizures 

Edited December 22, 2016 by JustNo

[George FmplesdaCosteedback]

14 hours ago, ezzra said:

So what's next? ban the sale of day everything just because of one deranged

person has misused them? do you ban the sale of kitchen knives when some

crazed people use them to stab other people?

as was said before, logic, common sense and lateral thinking not

the strongest suit of the policy makers in this county....

 

Normally I would agree entirely with what you said. I just have to add that the UK has restricted the sale of painkillers to 16 at any one time. Also for opiate derived painkillers like Tramadol  or Coedeine you need a doctor's prescription.

So for once this can't be said to be a case of TIT...

Edited December 22, 2016 by George FmplesdaCosteedback
Extra info

[joeyg]

13 hours ago, jacko45k said:

And aspirin and ibuprofin.

To be honest I find this OTT and inconvenient as I am the type to buy enough to last for a while, hopefully in a single vsit. Although surely in Thailand some drugs could be resrticted to prescription only.

As to knives, selling to children would concern me, as well as other weapons.

How about cricket or base ball bats?

 

[louse1953]

How about banning lao khao the worst poison in Thailand,

[Italian guy]

People who are complaining for this restrictions would have complained anyway if such restrictions hadn't been proposed! Complaining for the sake of it seems the favorite activity of many in here.

As far as I know you can't get Tramadol in Europe without medical prescription because of its well-known recreational use (abuse) potential. Oh, and Dextromethorphan  was banned long ago for the same reason...

[jacko45k]

7 hours ago, joeyg said:

How about cricket or base ball bats?

 

I would say no problem, although the latter should only be used by girls.

[Sapporillo]

7 hours ago, Italian guy said:

People who are complaining for this restrictions would have complained anyway if such restrictions hadn't been proposed! Complaining for the sake of it seems the favorite activity of many in here.

As far as I know you can't get Tramadol in Europe without medical prescription because of its well-known recreational use (abuse) potential. Oh, and Dextromethorphan  was banned long ago for the same reason...

That maybe true or not (the constant complaining), but you just don't know what this new restrictions mean for people who actually are sick. It's gonna be much more difficult and expensive to get what you need than in Europe: In Europe, you can get a prescription valid for six months, and six strips cost between 12 and 20$ (generic or original brand name), and  you'll get 6 strips (60 capsules) with every refill. You know why? Because some people actually need it, and in that quantity/dosage. 

In a Bangkok public hospital, I paid 2500฿ (Yes, two thousand five hundred) for a prescription and 6 strips (no generic), and that prescription was void after that, hence no refills and the next six strips would have cost me another 2500. Fortunately for me, I'm not yet staying in Asia all the time, so next time I'll know what to expect. Unless there's a cheaper way, a lot of people are gonna have serious problems, or will even need to relocate. For me, Thailand is probably off the list now. 

 

Of course, for those who wanna abuse the drug, this won't change much, I guess there are plenty of ways to get a few strips easily, for a party on the weekend. It's just gonna be much harder to get them legally and regularly. 

[seahorse]

Here's something to cheer you all up.

Tramadol Nights

 

[buick]

14 hours ago, TPI said:

It still amazes me that the Thai government has banned the over the counter sale of Aspirin, any logical reason?? 

 

i used to buy bayer aspirin frequently.  i like to take aspirin with paracetamol.  my pharmacy guy told me about the 'ban' and i asked why.  i couldn't really understand his answer, something about a patent expiration and lack of payment.  i'm not sure how the drug industry works but perhaps bayer opted to not pay the thais for the privilege of selling their product in thailand.  it would be great to know the truth. 

 

i should also mention i asked another dozen pharmacies (mainly 'boots') in several thai cities and they couldn't even provide a response.  just a shrug, sigh, and upside down smile !!!!

[joeyg]

4 hours ago, jacko45k said:

I would say no problem, although the latter should only be used by girls.

I don't understand?

You mean something like this? 

or maybe this little girly scene... 

 

[selftaopath]

From what I just read:

paracetamol (anti-inflammatory) is NOT an opioid based medication, but Tramadol is. BIG difference.

[mcfish]

That maybe true or not (the constant complaining), but you just don't know what this new restrictions mean for people who actually are sick. It's gonna be much more difficult and expensive to get what you need than in Europe: In Europe, you can get a prescription valid for six months, and six strips cost between 12 and 20$ (generic or original brand name), and  you'll get 6 strips (60 capsules) with every refill. You know why? Because some people actually need it, and in that quantity/dosage. 
In a Bangkok public hospital, I paid 2500฿ (Yes, two thousand five hundred) for a prescription and 6 strips (no generic), and that prescription was void after that, hence no refills and the next six strips would have cost me another 2500. Fortunately for me, I'm not yet staying in Asia all the time, so next time I'll know what to expect. Unless there's a cheaper way, a lot of people are gonna have serious problems, or will even need to relocate. For me, Thailand is probably off the list now. 
 
Of course, for those who wanna abuse the drug, this won't change much, I guess there are plenty of ways to get a few strips easily, for a party on the weekend. It's just gonna be much harder to get them legally and regularly. 

One word ... Pattaya. But even that won't last for ever

Sent from my SC-01D using Tapatalk

[TravelerEastWest]

16 hours ago, JustNo said:

Tramadol is a synthetic opiate and to my knowledge the only opiate that is also an antidepressant because it doubles up as an SSRI. Taking it regularly for long periods and then stopping abruptly can cause serotonin syndrome and seizures 

 

Exactly strong stuff that should be restricted.

 

Worse yet for those who really need it is that a tolerance can build...

[Italian guy]

7 hours ago, Sapporillo said:

It's gonna be much more difficult and expensive to get what you need than in Europe

That's a fair point, I must admit. I do use some Tramadol myself but only occasionally if I really need it for my back pain. However, kids are abusing it and something must be done to limit the damage. It is quite possibly the whole system that should change (let people who need it have a prescription that's valid for a few months, etc.).

Anyway, if you read the article well you'll notice that (as usual) there's a way around the restriction, as you are allowed to buy up to 10 pills at a time. Go to 10 drugstores and get 100 pills... and that's valid also for the abusers unfortunately...

[mcfish]

 
Exactly strong stuff that should be restricted.
 
Worse yet for those who really need it is that a tolerance can build...

Pretty much all drugs build in tolerance,tramadol is no different.
People need to understand the difference between addiction and dependence. There is a huge difference, one is for fun the other is to stay alive.

Sent from my SC-01D using Tapatalk

[natway09]

Really smart move to show the packet & name the product 

[Sapporillo]

7 hours ago, mcfish said:

Pretty much all drugs build in tolerance,tramadol is no different.
People need to understand the difference between addiction and dependence. There is a huge difference, one is for fun the other is to stay alive.

Sent from my SC-01D using Tapatalk
 

That's actually not true, a lot of drugs don't build up tolerance, it's one of the downsides of opiates. Tramadol was engineered to be less addictive and should build up less of a tolerance as natural opiates, and that's true, unless it is abused (eg if you use it regularly to get high, you will need very high doses very quickly, plus you have to mix it with other stuff). 

Still, it is an addictive substance, no one should deny that. But it is also an excellent painkiller, and, if responsibly taken, can be a very good drug for chronic pain, since it has been on the market for a long time and its short AND long term side effects are pretty well known by now. It is, to my knowledge, also the only one in this category (opioids?) easily available around the world (other opioids need special prescriptions, and aren't available in any pharmacy), so it's not like we can just use something else. Yes, there are alternatives, but life won't be the same, it's just not very fun to be walking around with constant pain...

As for the withdrawal: yes, the withdrawal symptoms are pretty nasty if you go "cold turkey", but why would you do this? Btw, there's plenty of antidepressants that need to be taken off gradually too, and if you do that with Tramadol, it's not gonna be as bad and you should be good within a couple of weeks. 

[uptoyoumyfriend]

On 12/23/2016 at 9:59 AM, selftaopath said:

From what I just read:

paracetamol (anti-inflammatory) is NOT an opioid based medication, but Tramadol is. BIG difference.

ibuprofen is anti inflammatory  but not paracetamol. but para can be taken on an empty stomach.a huge advantage.

paracetamol  however kills many people as it causes  liver failure if taken too much.

it is all on the net to read,  google any medication that you take and learn about its properties.

this is one of the major benefits of the net,you can wise up fast.

Edited December 27, 2016 by uptoyoumyfriend

[TheLairdofCockPen]

On 23/12/2016 at 9:43 PM, Sapporillo said:

That's actually not true, a lot of drugs don't build up tolerance, it's one of the downsides of opiates. Tramadol was engineered to be less addictive and should build up less of a tolerance as natural opiates, and that's true, unless it is abused (eg if you use it regularly to get high, you will need very high doses very quickly, plus you have to mix it with other stuff). 

Still, it is an addictive substance, no one should deny that. But it is also an excellent painkiller, and, if responsibly taken, can be a very good drug for chronic pain, since it has been on the market for a long time and its short AND long term side effects are pretty well known by now. It is, to my knowledge, also the only one in this category (opioids?) easily available around the world (other opioids need special prescriptions, and aren't available in any pharmacy), so it's not like we can just use something else. Yes, there are alternatives, but life won't be the same, it's just not very fun to be walking around with constant pain...

As for the withdrawal: yes, the withdrawal symptoms are pretty nasty if you go "cold turkey", but why would you do this? Btw, there's plenty of antidepressants that need to be taken off gradually too, and if you do that with Tramadol, it's not gonna be as bad and you should be good within a couple of weeks. 

How can something be less addictive? it either is addictive or not. 

 

When I took tramadol for a back injury, I wanted more and more and tried to come off 5 times but couldn't until going into a detox hospital.

 

Bad bad bad, stay away!!

 

 

[Bule gila]

On 22/12/2016 at 5:26 AM, webfact said:

BANGKOK: -- TOUGHER restrictions will be imposed on the sale of the painkiller tramadol to tackle drug misuse among teenagers, a director of the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) said yesterday.

Is this serious journalism? Have these people ever heard of the Internet? Do they know that opiates have been banned for years in the west? I wonder why? Do they give a flying toss about poor people or socio-economic issues? Are they more interested in lining their own pockets? 

 

All rhetorical questions btw. Answers on a postcard to...[I can't say 'cos I'll be jailed, c/o nobody knows].

[bkk6060]

Any of this drug crackdown stuff is so hypocritical.  The US is the worst now.  You cannot get much of anything strong for pain even from a Doctor.  The excuse is for "the health of the community".  Really?? What about all the smokers and drinkers destroying 1,000's of lives everyday.  Much more then painkillers.  But they would never ban these because tobacco and booze are big money.  What a joke.

[balo]

You can get very high on Tramadol , I just did a google search and it seems like the drug abusers all over the world love it.

I am happy to see it off the shelves and only be used on people with real pain problems.  It's a shame that teenagers can get it so easily . Mix it with alcohol or other drugs and we have a killer. 

 

 

 

 

 

[bkk6060]

1 hour ago, balo said:

You can get very high on Tramadol , I just did a google search and it seems like the drug abusers all over the world love it.

I am happy to see it off the shelves and only be used on people with real pain problems.  It's a shame that teenagers can get it so easily . Mix it with alcohol or other drugs and we have a killer.

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry to disappoint you but it is not off the shelves.  Read the new rules I saw it in half a dozen pharmacies today. The pharmacies can sell it,  but limited to 10 pills.