PHARMACEUTICAL FIRM OFFERS AID FOR PRESCRIPTION-DRUG TRACKING SYSTEM

TALLAHASSEE . In an effort to overcome opposition in the Legislature and to
get a prescription-drug tracking system up and running in the state, drug
maker Purdue Pharma has offered to subsidize the cost of running the
massive electronic monitoring program -- an expense that could exceed $3
million a year.

Purdue Pharma, which manufactures the painkiller OxyContin, has already
pledged a $2 million to develop the system.

The $2 million offer, attached to a deadline of getting legislative
approval for the system by July, was made as part of a 2002 decision by the
state attorney general to drop an investigation into the company's
marketing of OxyContin.

The company's new offer is meant to ward off strong opposition to the drug
monitoring system among key House Republicans who see it as costly,
intrusive and ineffective as a tool for combating drug abuse and Medicaid
fraud.

"We have indicated that we'd enter into discussions with the administration
to look at the possibility of helping with the operating costs if that was
the snag in getting the legislation through," said Alan Must, vice
president of state government and legislative affairs for Purdue Pharma.
"We have a vested interest in making sure it is done and done correctly."

The 2002 agreement -- and the company's latest offer -- allows the drug
maker to claim credit for funding a computerized system that will be made
available to every other state in the nation without charge.

Purdue Pharma lobbyists told aides to Gov. Jeb Bush last week that the
company may be able to spend millions to keep the system running for years.

The database, if approved, could allow doctors, designated medical
assistants and pharmacists to look up online the pharmacy records of
patients over 17 to ensure they haven't been shopping for multiple
prescriptions. Every pharmacy record for certain classes of potentially
addictive drugs, such as anxiety-fighting Xanax, mood-changing Valium and
painkilling OxyContin, would be monitored.

Bush champions the idea as a response to 3,324 prescription drug overdose
deaths in Florida last year alone. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel revealed
the problems in investigations last year on prescription drug abuse and
Medicaid fraud.

Bush and his advisers said they see the database as a way to halting
"doctor shopping" and stem the rise in overdose deaths in Florida.

Legislation creating the database has not yet reached the floor of the
House and Senate. But bills in both chambers call for the system to
dissolve by 2008 unless legislators agree to extend it.

Purdue Pharma's latest financial offer surfaced after Bush held talks with
his top drug policy advisers Thursday to try to mount new pressure on
Republican legislators blocking the system.

Among those opposed to it are House Appropriations Committee Chairman Bruce
Kyle, Rep. Carole Green of Naples and Rep. Joe Negron of Stuart, who are
involved in setting the state's health policies.

Bush, instead, took a more subtle approach, saying he now expects
legislators to support the monitoring program that his administration has
been seeking for nearly three years.

"There's no reason for them not to [approve it]," Bush said. "The concerns
from privacy rights, the costs, and the rest have been dealt with."

Some of the governor's pressure is meant for House Speaker Johnnie Byrd,
who in January announced his support for the database but has not yet
pushed the issue to a floor vote.

"Bringing it up for a vote ... would be the fulfillment of his promise of
support," said Jim McDonough, director of the governor's Office of Drug
Control.

Some legislators with close ties to Byrd, including Negron, oppose the plan
regardless of Purdue Pharma's money. Negron said he worries about the data
getting into the wrong hands despite protections in the bill to prevent that.

"There are not protections," said Negron, chairman of the Palm Beach County
delegation. "If you go to get a [narcotic], you're name is going to be sent
to Tallahassee to have your drug usage monitored by the state of Florida."