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By: Irwin Gratz

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The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration recently released data tracking opioid pill distribution from 2006 to 2012. It shows more opioid pills were handed out in Penobscot County than in any other county in New England. But by 2016, Maine had already moved to address issues of overprescribing. The state passed a law that set education and training standards for opioid prescribers.

Gordon Smith helped administer that program and is Maine’s first director of opioid response. He spoke with Maine Public’s Irwin Gratz.