prescribe, proscribe

Prescribe or prescribe means to write down a set of rules or behavior. As a medical term, prescribe means a doctor has ordered a medicine or treatment--
The doctor might prescribe an antibiotic for his infection.
Only a doctor can prescribe something like that.
My grandmother used to prescribe chicken soup for a cold.
Most people with poor vision have a doctor prescribe their glasses.
Prescribe is also a legal term having to do with the use of property--
The court agreed to prescribe a passage to the river across his neighbor's land.

Proscribe or proscribe means to ban or prohibit, as in to make illegal--
The intent of the law is to proscribe illegal gambling.
We would probably need a constitutional amendment to proscribe guns.
Proscribe also means to denounce something--
The minister could be counted on to proscribe lewd behavior.
The historical meaning of proscribe is to declare a person an outlaw or condemned--
In Ancient Rome, to proscribe someone meant to take all of his property.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"The speaker did not hesitate to proscribe the tendency of doctors to prescribe too many narcotics."

Note--"prescription" is the noun ( thing or idea ) from of "prescribe"--
The doctor wrote a prescription.
He waited at the drugstore while they filled his prescription.
Note # 2--"proscription" is the noun ( thing or idea ) form of "proscribe"--
The congregation paid little attention to the preacher's proscription of  alcohol.