March 11, 2011

By Greg Giordano

State Senator Mike Fasano

State Senator Mike Fasano has great concerns with Representative Rob Schenck’s proposal to repeal the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, end state oversight of pain management clinics and prohibit doctors from dispensing medications from their offices.

I certainly appreciate Representative Schenck’s commitment to ending pill mills in Florida. However, I do not agree with his proposed path to get there.

It is my opinion that his legislation will undo many years of work undertaken to combat the abuse and diversion of prescription medications. Right now the Department of Health has a registry of all pain clinics in the state. The department inspects these clinics periodically to ensure that they are operating as state law requires.

This bill will threaten the ability for legitimate doctors to practice while giving free reign to the bad actors to continue their illegal acts.

Representative Schenck’s would End the the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) a statewide data base which, when fully operational, will track the use of controlled substances throughout Florida.

The proposal would not require pain management clinics to register or be overseen by the Florida Department of Health.

Further, the bill strikes removes prohibitions on advertising, one key method that pill mills use to get the word out to the community that they offer controlled substances.

“If the PDMP is repealed Florida will once again become a destination state for drug seekers,” Senator Fasano states. “Florida’s PDMP was modeled, in part, after Kentucky’s monitoring program. Leaders in Kentucky and other states have contacted our state asking that the PDMP not be repealed. If the PDMP is gone then people from outside of Florida will continue to travel here to buy drugs and then either abuse or divert them back home.”

“Senator Fasano added:

This legislation as written is especially harmful to people of little means. There does not appear to be any provisions for residents of rural communities that may have few health care options available to them. I have grave concerns that this legislation will have an adverse impact on the neediest of our state.

Fasono is a straight shooter and authored a pain management law that would ended the Hillbilly Heroin (oxycontin) splurges of men like Rush Limbaugh and stopped the doctor shopping for pain meds because there was a state wide database tracking these prescriptions.

Rick Scott didn't like the law and cut-off funds and eliminated the enforcement arm of the law. Scott was immediately criticized by the Republican governor of Kentucky who said most of the illegal drugs in Eastern Kentucky were from Florida.

Rightardia believes Scott didn't like the law because it would affect corporate bottom lines. Rightardia thinks Scott is putting corporate profits ahead of the general welfare of the public.

Well, no surprises here/ Scott is a billionaire Republican.