California Healthline
California officials say that they lack the resources to use the state's prescription tracking database to identify physicians who might be overprescribing painkillers and other drugs, the AP/U-T San Diego reports. About the Database: The database -- called the Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System, or CURES -- tracks patients' prescription drug history in an effort to curb illegal sales and misuse of prescription medication. The state Department of Justice's Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement ran the CURES database until 2011, when Gov. Jerry Brown (D) eliminated the Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement. CURES now is operated by one full-time employee in the state attorney general's office.
