SHAW'S REMOVES OXYCONTIN FROM PHARMACY SHELVES

MARK HAMSTRA

WEST BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Shaw's Supermarkets here said earlier this month that it would no longer stock the pain medication OxyContin in its pharmacies. It will continue to order it for patients with valid prescriptions, however.

The move mirrors action taken recently by Hannaford Bros., Scarborough, Maine. Yet it goes against what most members of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, Alexandria, Va., are doing.

The NACDS held a conference call with its members last week to discuss the problem of OxyContin theft, and most agreed that they would continue to stock the drug, according to one participant in the call.

Shaw's decision to stop stocking the drug followed two recent incidents in which the medication was stolen from Shaw's pharmacies, spokesman Bernard Rogan said.

All Shaw's and Star Markets with pharmacies will display signage explaining the policy change to customers, who now must wait three business days for their OxyContin prescriptions to be filled.

OxyContin, made by Purdue Pharma, Stamford, Conn., has been widely abused by people who crush the pills and either snort or inject the powder to bypass the time-release mechanism and get a heroin-like high.

Hannaford Bros. stopped carrying OxyContin about four months ago, after a robbery.

"We made the determination that no matter what precautions you put in place, you can't guarantee the safety of your customers and your associates from someone with a gun who is determined to get a drug," spokeswoman Caren Epstein told SN.