TALLAHASSEE, Fla., April 22 (UPI) -- Florida legislators passed a bill they say is aimed at cleaning up the state's image as the country's pharmaceutical "pill mill" capital.
Amid soaring cases of prescription-drug abuse in south and central Florida, the measure would put new restrictions on doctors, clinics and pharmacies and implement a state prescription-drug monitoring database, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported Thursday.
The Florida House bill, which passed 116-1, bans doctors from directly dispensing powerful pain medications, requiring patients to fill prescriptions at a pharmacy.
The bill also puts new restrictions on pain-management clinics, sets limits on how much pain medications such as oxycodone or morphine a wholesaler can sell to a retail pharmacy in a month, and creates a permitting process for pharmacies.
A similar bill is pending in the Florida Senate.
"Today, we are one step closer to giving law enforcement and regulators the tools they need to combat pill mills and prescription drug abuse in Florida," Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi said.
