PMPs and their stakeholders
Recognition of the drug abuse problem has led, in part, to an increasing adoption of state Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs (PMPs). As of April 2011, 44 states either had an operational PMP or had adopted legislation authorizing a PMP. To support these PMPs, institutional stakeholders such as the Alliance of States with Prescription Monitoring Programs, the Institute of Justice Information Systems' PMP Committee, the National Alliance for Model State Drug Laws, and the National Association of State Controlled Substances Authorities have developed programs and activities to serve specific PMP constituencies. As PMP programs have proliferated, more broadly focused institutional stakeholders, including the Addiction Technology Transfer Center, the American Association for Treatment of Opioid Dependence, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration have taken an increasing interest in PMP data and its uses.

Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) support
BJA, through its Harold Rogers PMP grant program, has played a central role in the growth of PMPs. BJA has made grants to states seeking to develop or enhance PMPs and has supported technical assistance for the grantees. To serve their constituencies, these stakeholders are producing an increasing quantity of information about PMPs. At the same time, they represent major consumers of PMP information generated by other stakeholders, including those providing technical assistance.

How PMPs Address the Problem
See our Briefing on PMP Effectiveness for how PMPs address the prescription drug abuse epidemic. For an overview of approaches to the epidemic, including the use of PMPs, see Curtailing diversion and abuse of opioid analgesics without jeopardizing pain treatment by Nora Volkow (National Institute on Drug Abuse) and Tom McLellan (Center for Substance Abuse Solutions). And for recommendations on how PMPs should be improved and their data more widely applied, see COE director John Eadie’s U.S. Senate testimony, Toward the next generation of PMPs: enhancing PMPs' ability to address the prescription drug abuse epidemic.