Pubdate: Sat, 04 Jun 2011 Source: Palm Beach Post, The (FL) Copyright: 2011 The Palm Beach Post Contact: http://www.palmbeachpost.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/333 Author; John Lantigua, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/oxycontin.htm (Oxycontin/Oxycodone) LAWS REGULATING PRESCRIPTION, DISPENSING OF PAIN PILLS IN FLORIDA NOW TOUGHER FORT LAUDERDALE =AD As Gov. Rick Scott performed a ceremonial signing of a new law cracking down on pill mills Friday, Hellene Grundler sat in the front row grinning with pleasure. It was her turn to smile. In the past, the issue of prescription drug abuse had cost her tears. On Aug. 15, 2009, the same day her daughter gave birth to her grandson, Grundler found her son Derek, 32, dead of an overdose of the powerful painkiller oxycodone in his Broward apartment. "God took one life from us and he sent us another one," said Grundler, 59, although it was clear she didn't consider it a good deal. Grundler said her son had long suffered from a drug abuse problem and just two days before his death a local doctor had given him 150 oxycodone pills for no good medical reason. She said she began agitating "that same day" for tougher laws against pill mills. This week her efforts paid off, as did those of others around the state, including The Palm Beach Post, which since 2009 has written about the escalating number of pain clinics in South Florida, and has exposed several founded by convicted drug dealers and other criminals. Scott signed the pain management bill (HB 7095) into law Thursday in Tallahassee, then staged ceremonial signings Friday in Fort Lauderdale, Tampa and Orlando. The new law toughens reporting requirements for a statewide prescription drug monitoring database, penalizes doctors who overprescribe painkillers, requires pain clinics to register with the state, tightens the regulations for running pharmacies and obliges drug wholesalers and pharmacists to report people who try to make questionable purchases. Scott had wanted the legislature to repeal the database law it passed two years ago, raising questions of how the database would be funded and of possible invasions of privacy. But Attorney General Pam Bondi, a fellow Republican, and some GOP lawmakers pushed for it and Scott acceded. "I am proud to sign this bill, which cracks down on the criminal abuse of prescription drugs," said Scott, speaking at Fort Lauderdale Police Department headquarters. "This legislation will save lives in our state and it marks the beginning of the end of Florida's infamous role as the nation's pill mill capital." Bondi chimed in from Tallahassee. "Not a day goes by that I don't hear a story of someone who has lost a family member or friend to prescription drug abuse," she said in a statement. "This legislation will make significant strides in ridding Florida of unscrupulous doctors and pill mills, making our state a safer place to live and raise our families." The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has reported that 98 of the nation's 100 top prescribers of oxycodone are located in Florida. Florida pharmacies have dispensed 126 million pills in one year, more than the rest of the nation combined, according to the DEA. Many of those pills are taken to other states and illegally resold. Oxycodone is best known under the brand name Oxycontin. When used properly, it and similar medications slowly release ingredients over many hours to help patients deal with chronic pain. Abusers crush the pills and sniff or inject them, resulting in a euphoric heroin-like high. According to state officials, more than 2,500 people per year - about seven per day - die in Florida from painkiller abuse. Obama administration health officials say prescription painkiller abuse kills more than 28,000 people per year nationally and that it has become the leading cause of death in 17 states, surpassing car accidents. The administration has increased funding for state prescription drug monitoring programs and has started a program, led by the Food and Drug Administration, to educate doctors about risks related to painkillers. Friday, Grundler showed reporters a silver locket she wears around her neck and inside it a photo of her late son Derek. She said it was too late for her family to save him, but not too late for other families. "Seven people die in Florida every day from this," she said. "That's an epidemic and most people don't even know it's happening. Maybe that will change." - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom