Impact of scheduling on the practice of medicine and biomedical research

The regulating system for controlling the legitimate uses of opioids and other psychoactive agents, the scheduling process, inevitably influences clinical practice and drug development. Some of the influences have been positive; comparatively few cases of drug dependence are directly related to medical treatment. Among the negative effects are overcaution in the use of opioids, which causes needless suffering. Overly conservative decision-making in the scheduling of new analgesics can lead to a reduction in research and development in this area.