Sunday, February 05, 2012

Site Search

Archive for January, 2010

« Older Entries

Doctor Shopping Bill in Florida Still On the Way

Last Updated on Sunday, 31 January 2010 11:46 Written by blogmaster Sunday, 31 January 2010 11:46

1157468 32692339 225x300 Doctor Shopping Bill in Florida Still On the WayIn the recent times, there have been quite a few and serious attempts to put an end to the burgeoning plain clinic industry of Florida. With this attempt, there have also been significant efforts made in curbing the abuse of prescription drugs in the state. All these attempts have large done through statewide monitoring of the drug database. Now, the state seems to be pretty much serious about getting a firm hold on the drug database and are on a full swing in making the passing of this bill in the Florida House, a reality.  This has come as a great measure under the initiative of the representatives like Marcelo Llorente, Kelly Skidmore and Kurt Kelly. They are hoped to create a statewide drug database that will keep a track on the doctor prescriptions that are filled in for medications related to addiction. These addictive medications include narcotic painkillers like oxycodone.

The bill passed the Florida House 103-10 after a long debate which went on for some, one and half hours. A similar such proposal was also passed a few days later and it is now on its way to the governor. Llorente declared that the practice of doctor shopping in Florida needs to be brought to an end and for that pain mills that have so flourishingly doing business in the state must be put out of business. According to some recent studies and reports, over 2000 people die of prescription drug overdose in Florida every year. The information contained in the drug database of Florida will allow the registered medical practitioners, pharmacists and many a times, even the law enforcement officials of the state to identify the people who are doctor shopping. Doctor shopping is on a rise in Florida and is considered a threatening drug offence.

The drug overdose death in the state has been tripled by the illicit drugs like heroin and cocaine. Already thirty eight states of U.S have implemented the drug tracking databases but the privacy concerns associated with the Florida run prescription drug database are delaying efforts for the creation of a similar such system within the state. This makes Florida the largest state in the nation that is without a proper prescription drug database system. According to some people, the lack of a proper monitoring system and lax regulations has encouraged the mushrooming of pain mills across the state. This has drawn people from different parts of the country too besides within the state itself, to get easy access to these addiction medications.

Tags: , , , , , , ,   |  Posted under Florida Rehab  |  No Comments

The Misuse of Medical Painkiller OxyContin in Florida

Last Updated on Monday, 18 January 2010 01:49 Written by blogmaster Monday, 18 January 2010 01:47

502465 76677892 300x208 The Misuse of Medical Painkiller OxyContin in FloridaOxyContin is a painkiller drug used for medical purposes that is being highly abused in the state of Florida. This prescription drug comes handy in relieving high to moderate pain. The drug is prescribed for pain associated in bursitis, fractures, injuries, dislocations, arthritis, neuralgia, cancer and lower back. Oxycontin contains an opium derivative called oxycodone. Oxycontin is popularly known as OX, OC, Oxy, Kicker and Oxycotton. Since the drug was introduced in the year 1996, there has been a rapid escalation in the misuse of this prescription medicine. The Oxycontin drug can be snorted like cocaine or crushed and then mixed with water and injected into the bloodstream like heroin. However, this medical drug also has a number of serious side effects. These cause respiratory depression. This drug is especially dangerous for the aged people. In Florida, there has been a rise in the addiction of OxyContin.

The demand for this drug shot up so much that it resulted in robbery of the pharmacies. There has also been a rise in forging of prescriptions. Kids in the age group of 12 years or older have been found to be amongst the most affected population who are vulnerable to the addiction of OxyContin. In the last few years, the maximum increase has been noticed amongst the younger adults of Florida, who are in the age group of 18 to 25 years of age. Today OxyContin has become a major problem in the state of Florida. Internet is one of the easiest sources for acquiring this drug. Besides, many physicians and pharmacists are also contributing to the problem by selling this drug illegally to the non-patients. Doctor shopping is a common problem in Florida. Plus, problem of employee theft is also posing a problem in the state in this regard.

Hydrcone and Oxycodone alone took up some 152 lives in the state of Florida in the year 2000, all of which were a result of the overdose of these drugs. This prescription painkiller called OxyContin which has already been signaled out as a major threat to the medical system of Florida, has affected Sarasota the most. No other county in Florida is as affected by OxyContin as much as Sarasota. This is because, a high percentage of school students in Sarasota have taken to this drug addiction. The 2002, the Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey recorded 5.9 percent of school students studying in grades 6 to 12 were into the misuse of this prescription drug.

The Misuse of Medical Painkiller OxyContin in Florida

OxyContin is a painkiller drug used for medical purposes that is being highly abused in the state of Florida. This prescription drug comes handy in relieving high to moderate pain. The drug is prescribed for pain associated in bursitis, fractures, injuries, dislocations, arthritis, neuralgia, cancer and lower back. Oxycontin contains an opium derivative called oxycodone. Oxycontin is popularly known as OX, OC, Oxy, Kicker and Oxycotton. Since the drug was introduced in the year 1996, there has been a rapid escalation in the misuse of this prescription medicine. The Oxycontin drug can be snorted like cocaine or crushed and then mixed with water and injected into the bloodstream like heroin. However, this medical drug also has a number of serious side effects. These cause respiratory depression. This drug is especially dangerous for the aged people. In Florida, there has been a rise in the addiction of OxyContin.

The demand for this drug shot up so much that it resulted in robbery of the pharmacies. There has also been a rise in forging of prescriptions. Kids in the age group of 12 years or older have been found to be amongst the most affected population who are vulnerable to the addiction of OxyContin. In the last few years, the maximum increase has been noticed amongst the younger adults of Florida, who are in the age group of 18 to 25 years of age. Today OxyContin has become a major problem in the state of Florida. Internet is one of the easiest sources for acquiring this drug. Besides, many physicians and pharmacists are also contributing to the problem by selling this drug illegally to the non-patients. Doctor shopping is a common problem in Florida. Plus, problem of employee theft is also posing a problem in the state in this regard.

Hydrcone and Oxycodone alone took up some 152 lives in the state of Florida in the year 2000, all of which were a result of the overdose of these drugs. This prescription painkiller called OxyContin which has already been signaled out as a major threat to the medical system of Florida, has affected Sarasota the most. No other county in Florida is as affected by OxyContin as much as Sarasota. This is because, a high percentage of school students in Sarasota have taken to this drug addiction. The 2002, the Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey recorded 5.9 percent of school students studying in grades 6 to 12 were into the misuse of this prescription drug.

Tags: , , , ,   |  Posted under Florida Rehab  |  No Comments

Deaths in Florida from OxyContin Abuse

Last Updated on Friday, 15 January 2010 07:21 Written by blogmaster Friday, 15 January 2010 07:21

254528 41231 300x225 Deaths in Florida from OxyContin AbusePrescription drug abuse is one of the growing concerns in the drug crime scene of Florida and this has posed a major threat. The most abused prescription drug however is OxyContin. OxyContin is an opioid analgesic which is like morphine. This drug contains oxycodone. There are other products in the market as well which contain OxyContin but then the strength of this drug is less in those products and excels in acetaminophen or aspirin content with oxycodone. There are many patients who cannot tolerate high doses of acetaminophen or aspirin and that is why, OxyContin substituted as relief drugs for their medical reasons.

The drug was first launched in the market in the year 1996 with the concept that main management should be aggressive. The drug began to work very effectively and soon it became popular. This skyrocketing popularity also led to its abuse in no time. The media attention revealed the reported abuse of OxyContin and the law enforcement authorities came to a conclusion that this expanding crisis of drug abuse is related to opioid addiction. So, the state health care regulator will have to involve themselves more seriously in finding out an effective solution to this threatening problem.
Florida has grown the hotspot of OxyContin abuse in the nation. In the year 2000, a student of the University of Florida died due to OxyContin overdose. It was later found out that the student had been supplied this drug illegally by another student who had stolen it from a local pharmacy. The mother of the dead victim filed a lawsuit against the company which manufactures this medical drug, alleging negligence. Another similar case happened in the state, when a physician of South Florida was arrested with criminal negligence charges for prescribing controlled substances like OxyContin to his patients who died due to it.
Medical surveys throughout the state have revealed a dramatic increase in the number of deaths that have been caused due to OxyContin. A meeting was held by the Florida Board of Medicine Quality Assurance Committee to solve this growing concern of OxyContin abuse. The state Attorney General Bob Butterworth suggested in the meeting that the FDA should withdraw the drug from the market until some reformulations can be done to prevent the abuse. A state representative and a drug czar cited that since this drug has caused a tremendous number of deaths due to its overdose, a system should be introduced to prevent its abuse in any way in the future.

Tags: , , , , , ,   |  Posted under Florida Rehab  |  No Comments

The Rise of Prescription Drug Abuse in Florida

Last Updated on Friday, 15 January 2010 07:23 Written by blogmaster Friday, 15 January 2010 01:26

In various states of U.S, the abuse of prescription drug has stood up as a major problem. Likewise, the problem of prescription drug abuse is also quite popular in Florida. Current investigations have revealed a several number of prescription drug misuses cases and have seized the drugs and arrested the guilty. Some of the medicinal drugs that are widely misused in the state include Xanax, Vicodin, benzodiazepines, methadone, and oxycodone like OxyContin. OxyContin is amongst the most widely abused medicinal drug in the state and this has taken the shape of a threatening problem in Florida. The major reason for the popular use of this drug is its easy availability.

50429 3088 300x225 The Rise of Prescription Drug Abuse in Florida
It is very easy to obtain this drug illegally. Some order the prescription drugs over the internet. Besides this there are pharmacists and physicians who are often linked to selling these medical drugs illegally. Doctor shopping has become a growing concern in the state over the years now and needs an immediate check if this problem of prescription drug abuse in Florida is to be brought under control. Many a time people in desperation of obtaining these drugs for non-medical purposes, forge prescriptions and the pharmacists have to sell off the drugs in these cases. Employee theft is also another problem which plays a significant role in stealing these prescription drugs and selling them illegally for non-medical reasons.
The market of illegal prescription drug is a lucrative one in Florida and fake prescriptions have infiltrated this popular market. Many of these illegal sellers who obtain these prescription drugs for resale have been found out to be the former residents of Ohio and Kentucky. These sellers have found Florida a perfect venue to source painkillers which can earn them several dollars back home. From these places then the criminals take the painkillers and make the drugs ready for the next shipment for further distribution. But the good news is that that states like Ohio and Kentucky have excellent PMPs or Prescription Monitoring Programs. These effectively deal with the growing abuse of the pharmaceuticals within the state. In that regard however, Florida is still to succeed.
The state also already given two serious tries but then it is yet to get the legislation passed so that an effective PMP can be introduced into the state. Only a strong legislation can put a damper on the rise of prescription drug abuse in the state and bring a stop to the addiction. For strengthening the legal securities, even the manufacturing company of OxyContin, Purdue Pharma has offered to provide all necessary funds for starting up this program. But the problem is the representatives of the state are yet to get this whole thing done.

Tags: , , , , ,   |  Posted under Florida Rehab  |  No Comments

« Older Entries

Toll-Free Helpline

Call now for drug addiction help! Drug Addiction Help

Main Menu