Manchin amendment victim of greed

Chalk up another win for big pharma and another loss for everyone suffering the effects of drug abuse/misuse. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) had led a bipartisan effort to add an amendment to a FDA bill working its way through congress which would have reclassified all hydrocodone substances to Schedule II status. The amendment, supported by law enforcement organizations and backed by others concerned with abuse of prescription medicines, had passed unanimously in the Senate in May. However, when it moved to the House and then went to a compromise version, the amendment was omitted.
Hydrocodone has been listed as Schedule III for decades, but is seen as being among the most abused drugs on the market. Raising it to Schedule II would have restricted its distribution and placed it in the same category as oxycodone.
The Manchin amendment fell victim to intense lobbying efforts from pharmaceutical interests including manufacturers and drug stores. The opponents complained that moving to the higher schedule would make it harder for patients to obtain, increase administrative burdens on the suppliers and force drug stores to buy larger safes to store the hydrocodone based medications.
Note: I read that as saying that the druggist wants to save money (at the expense of the community) and avoid inconveniencing the burglars who might break into his store looking for pills to steal and resell. It is just too troublesome to put these things in a safe with the oxycodone. Instead, we'll just leave them on the shelf so the bad guys will be able to take them and sell to the kids on the street.