In Florida alone, hydrocodone caused 910 deaths and contributed to 1, 803 others between 2003 and 2007.

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Combination hydrocodone drugs usually also contain acetaminophen, the active ingredient in common pain products such as Tylenol.

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The panel's advice, if adopted by the FDA, would limit how much hydrocodone a patient could get between doctor visits.

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And while Anderson does not wholly agree that reclassifying hydrocodone will necessarily change habits, he says that the move does underline a dire need to change the overall perception of painkillers.

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"Most doctors are under the impression that Vicodin (whose main ingredient is hydrocodone) is less addictive than other prescription painkillers, " said Dr. Andrew Kolodny, president of Physicians for Responsible Opioid Prescribing.

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But it is up for question whether rescheduling hydrocodone will deter doctors from prescribing, or make it very difficult for patients to obtain it, said Dr. Stephen Anderson, an emergency-room physician in Auburn, Washington.

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If the panel's advice is adopted by FDA, it would put hydrocodone on par with prescription painkillers like oxycodone, morphine, and methadone -- drugs with high abuse potential that can lead to severe physical dependence.

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With its vote, the advisory panel is suggesting that hydrocodone be moved from its current classification as a Schedule III drug -- a drug with moderate abuse potential -- to a more restrictive Schedule II classification.

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Among a wide field of potent prescription painkillers -- which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says are fueling an epidemic of abuse in the United States -- hydrocodone may have been flying under the radar among doctors.

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Compare that to hydrocodone.

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