Nearly 30 years ago, then-first lady Nancy Reagan launched her “Say No To Drugs” campaign. The federal government declared a war on illegal drugs. Has it worked? Or are we still facing a scourge on society that tears apart families and communities?

In the 1990s, cocaine and crack dominated the drug landscape. Through the first decade of this century, crystal methamphetamine reared its ugly head. Now, the fight against illegal drugs is facing an epidemic with prescription drug abuse.

A federal report released Monday showed abuse in the Medicare system to the tune of $148 million in prescription frauds. The most common of these coveted pills are oxycodone, Vicodin and Lorcet. In one case in Georgia, the federal report showed a Medicare recipient received 3,655 oxycontin pills — more than a four-year supply — from 58 different prescribers.

The problem is not isolated to certain states. It hits communities, including our own. On Sept. 29, a Tallulah physician and his live-in girlfriend in Vicksburg were charged with 300 counts each of prescription fraud. Authorities believe the couple obtained nearly 14,000 pills and tablets through fraudulent prescription drug activity.

The two are out of jail on $100,000 bonds and their guilt or innocence will be decided in a courtroom. But if what police are saying is true, 14,000 pills is a bit much for personal use.

For each person taken off the streets, though, someone will fill in the void. As long as demand is high — and demand for these pills is very high — and money can be made, nefarious people will find a way to “work” the system to their advantage. Diagnosing the problem is fairly simple. Crafting a solution is far from it.

This past week, Nobel prizes were awarded to scientists, to physicists, to physicians. Brilliant minds exist in this world. And it will take a brilliant mind to stop the national scourge of prescription drug abuse. The tightrope between people wary of over-government interference and those who would do anything to stop this problem will have to be walked.

When crystal meth was a growing problem in Mississippi, the Legislature in 2010 passed a law regulating the sale of pseudoephedrine, the key ingredient in the drug. Meth lab seizures since the law passed have dropped by about 70 percent, a Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics report showed. But stop the crystal meth production, and dealers will move onto other drugs.

The key will be to devise a system, maybe a fingerprint analysis, connected to a national database that regulates every time someone tries to obtain narcotics. There are many positive, legal uses for these drugs and there might be inconvenience to law-abiding citizens.

But what is the alternative? Massive Medicare — think taxpayer — fraud? More addictions to horribly addictive drugs? More front page stories about area doctors?

It’s great to honor the scientist who discovered quasicrystals — the theory that atoms in a crystal could be packed in a pattern that could not be repeated — but it does not help a serious problem facing us right now. Brilliant minds with focus and determination are the answers to America’s most current scourge.