Dangerous Drug Diversion Control Act

[Page 185]The Dangerous Drug Diversion Control Act (DDDCA; 21 U.S.C. Sec. 811(h)) of 1984 was the first chief revision of the various rules and regulations found within the Controlled Substances Act and the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act, both of which were ratified in 1970. The new law focused on the diversion of prescription drugs onto the black market, as well as the misuse of drugs designed by pharmaceutical companies. This was not the first instance of Congress trying to address the problem. In 1970 legislators tried to tackle the problem with the Comprehensive Act, which acknowledged that legal drugs were being sold illicitly, adding that up to 70 percent of drug abuse came from diversion. However, this did not solve the problem as ...