Movie

7/16/23

US Postal Inspector General
1735 N Lynn St
Arlington, VA 22209

re: Controlled Substance Movie

For your convenience, this letter is published on the Internet at:
mkgappraisal.com/letter2023_21.htm

This letter is to report possible weakness and/or security problems during shipments of controlled substance prescriptions thru the US Mail.

To demonstrate how these pills are shipped, and what my concern is, I made a short movie.
Watch the movie at:
mkgappraisal.com/462.MOV

The movie runs 6 minutes 12 seconds. There is no sound.

I demonstrate how anyone can open up the container of pills, and then remove one (or all) of the pills from the container. And then, one by one, remove each of the pills from the envelope.

If the Postman (or anyone) replaced one (or all) of the pills with counterfeit pills (fentanyl, or placebo) that looked identical, the recipient would have no way of knowing.

It is possible to do all this without opening the envelope. It could be done in 2 or 3 minutes, without any special knowledge or skill.

My thoughts:

1) The container of pills should be sealed during shipment. All of the non controlled substance containers have a metallic seal.

2) The envelope should not have a hole big enough for a pill to pass thru.

I am sending this letter to the Post Office Inspector General, and a second copy to the DEA. I urge both of you to watch the movie, and ask yourself if you see a problem. Or not.

If you watch the movie and decide you don't see a problem, you can choose to respond by doing nothing.

Scope: If there is a problem, how big is it?
These facts are from a 2015 inspection report from the State Board of Pharmacy:
45,000 prescriptions daily,
42 pharmacist, 60 technicians
160 ancillary staff
Not all of the 45,000 prescriptions are mail order. They do not ship to every State. Perhaps 95% of their orders go to 20 (or so) States. Not all of the mail order shipments are controlled substance.

My best guess is that things continue today pretty much unchanged from the way they were in 2015. I would be surprised if they ship anything less than 200 controlled substance packages every day. But that represents a wild guess on my part.

If you are concerned enough that you might want to follow up and do something, please respond directly to me via the US Mail. Please do not attempt to call me on the telephone.

Philip G Rice
11268 E Linvale Dr
Aurora, CO 80014

cc:
US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)
8701 Morrissette Dr
Springfield, VA 22152
Attn: Anne Milgran, Administrator

DEA.gov Submit a Tip
Use this page to report what appears to you as a possible violation of controlled substance laws and regulations. Violations may include the growing, manufacture, distribution or trafficking of controlled substances. Your information will be reviewed promptly by a DEA special agent or a professional staff member.

-- End of Letter --

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Philip G Rice

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