COE Expert Panel Meeting, December 2010.The COE Expert Panel held its initial meeting at the Hassenfeld Conference Center at Brandeis University, December 15-16, 2010. Plenary presentations included an overview of the prescription drug abuse epidemic and the role of prescription monitoring programs by Len Paulozzi of the Centers for Disease Control. A major focus of the meeting was exploration of potential COE activities in various aspects of prescription monitoring (e.g., use of PDMP data by law enforcement, substance abuse treatment programs and in clinical practice) using workgroups constituted by Expert Panel members and COE staff. Recommendations from the groups were presented to all meeting participants in a final plenary session and will help guide the COE in its work.

COE Expert Panel Conference Call, January 2012. The Expert Panel and COE staff participated in a 2.5 hour conference call on January 19, 2012 to provide feedback on COE work and accomplishments in 2011 and activities planned for 2012. Discussion included a draft of a white paper on PDMP best practices and planning for the Prescription Behavior Surveillance System, a project funded by the Centers for Disease Control and the Food and Drug Administration through the Bureau of Justice Assistance.