Last month, the Drug Enforcement Administration abruptly revoked the narcotics license held by the distributor Cardinal Health, preventing that firm from shipping prescription pain drugs to thousands of Florida pharmacies and hospitals. It's the latest tactic in the DEA's struggle to stem the illicit use of prescription painkillers like OxyContin and Vicodin.

OxyContin, which offers relief to patients with searing, prolonged agony due to diseases such as cancer, neurological illness and degenerative discs, is getting a bad rap.

The pharmaceutical drug OxyContin is a potent pain reliever, often the only help for hundreds of thousands of patients who suffer serious, relentless pain. The drug has recently been in the spotlight for its use as a street narcotic, sold on the black market and responsible for addiction and overdose...

The latest bad rap for OxyContin threatens to inflict more pain on those who truly benefit from the drug.

The problem with OxyContin is not the medicine itself, but its deliberate misuse.

OxyContin, the potent prescription painkiller, is in the spotlight.

The U.S. Patent Lawis now showing its age and is in need of reform.

The strategies being used by the Drug Enforcement Administration to tackle themisuse ofprescription drugsare ineffective andare preventing the development of new medicines.