Gov. Eric Greitens has made his first appointment to the state's medical licensing board as his administration works to get a database that can identify problem prescribers off the ground.
The Kansas City Star reports that Dr. Katherine Mathews will start working on the licensing board immediately and then have an official confirmation hearing in the Missouri Senate when the legislature resumes in January. Mathews has said she's prepared to discipline other doctors, depending on what each individual case calls for.
Some of the board's recent decisions have drawn concerns that it goes too easy on doctors. In August, the board restored the licenses — on a restricted basis — of two physicians with felony convictions related to misuse of prescription opioids.
An official says other appointments will be coming.