FDA urging tighter rein on painkillers

The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday recommended tighter controls on how doctors prescribe the most commonly used narcotic painkillers, changes that are expected to take place as early as next year, according to the New York Times.

The move follows a decade of debate over whether drugs containing hydrocodone should be controlled as tightly as more powerful painkillers, such as OxyContin.

The change would require patients to go back to doctors sooner, reducing the number of drug refills allowed.

Read more from the New York Times.