WASHINGTON — Members of the U.S. House from Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont are urging the federal Food and Drug Administration to reconsider approval of a powerful painkiller unless it’s made available in tamper-resistant form.

Reps. Mike Michaud and Chellie Pingree of Maine, Carol Shea-Porter and Annie Kuster of New Hampshire, and Peter Welch of Vermont outlined their concerns about Zohydro in a letter. The pill uses an extended-release formulation that’s far more powerful than currently available hydrocodone combination pills like Vicodin.

The lawmakers noted that northern New England is in the midst of an opiate epidemic, and that Zohydro is believed to be highly addictive without a tamper-proof formulation to discourage abuse. They say that without a tamper-proof version the extended-release drug could easily be crushed and snorted, chewed, or injected.


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