TRAGIC FOR PEOPLE TO CONTINUE TO DIE DUE TO PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE

Time to solve situation.

The numbers tell (almost) the whole story:

Three times as many Floridians died in 2007 from the abuse/misuse of
prescription pain medications than from illegal drugs, according to
figures released recently by the Florida Medical Examiners
Commission. Moreover, between 2000 and today, the number of deaths
related to prescription-drug abuse has more than tripled.

The problem is likely to get worse until Florida lawmakers take an
important, long-overdue step and create a statewide prescription-drug
monitoring database. Here's why:

The absence of a statewide monitoring database has caused
prescription-drug abuse in Florida to explode. There is a direct
correlation between increasing numbers of prescription-drug deaths
and the lack of enforcement.

"There's a significant disconnect between doctors and pharmacies,"
said Dr. Rafael Miguel, a former member of the state Board of
Medicine and current director of pain medicine for neurosurgery at
the University of South Florida in Tampa. "Patients who may be
abusing, and drug dealers, will target different doctors and
pharmacies. They can do this in Florida without virtually any chance
of getting caught."

People from outside the state are now coming to Florida, in
increasing numbers, to exploit the system.

Says Miguel: "What we've seen in recent years, with other database programs
being enacted in other states, are drug abusers and drug dealers coming
into our state, with impunity, and leaving doctors' offices with
prescriptions for controlled substances."

The solution? The creation of a statewide computer database. Once the
system has been put into place, the purchase of every potentially
lethal prescription drug would be logged into the program, thereby
giving doctors, pharmacists and law enforcement officers a critical
tool to help them spot abusers. Access to the online site would be
limited to Florida's licensed physicians and pharmacists, and local
and state law enforcement officers empowered by a court order to
investigate abuses.

Previous efforts in the state Legislature to create a database have
failed -- ostensibly because of concerns for "privacy rights."
However, as Miguel observes: "The Medicaid program in Florida has
used a secure online database for several years -- the same kind of
system we'd like lawmakers to approve. Security has never been an
issue with the Medicaid program, and it won't be a cause for concern
with the prescription-drug database, either."

The Florida Medical Association and a wide array of other medical and
professional organizations will attempt to persuade the 2009
Legislature to implement this much-needed tool.

There's another number Floridians should ponder: 7. This is the years
in a row Florida lawmakers have rejected bills that would have
created a prescription-drug monitoring database.

If lawmakers truly care, the eighth time will be the
charm.

BY THE NUMBERS

6-7

Average daily deaths in Florida caused by the abuse/misuse of
prescription drugs.

38

States that employ a prescription-drug monitoring database to track
sales. (Florida isn't one of them.)

989

Deaths caused by illegal drugs, such as heroin and
cocaine.

2,328

Deaths caused by prescription pain medications, such as Methadone,
OxyContin and Vicodin.

700,000

Floridians illegally abusing/misusing prescription
drugs.

Florida Medical Association