In the end, pill-mill bill passes unanimously

The pill-mill crackdown, which passed both the Senate and House unanimously on Friday, includes a ban on doctors dispensing the most dangerous narcotics, with only a few exceptions.

Since the House and Senate negotiators agreed only hours ago, no copies of the bill were immediately available. However, the staff of Sen. Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey, provided an outline that sums up the agreement. (Fasano was the one who persisted in pushing the plan through over great opposition).

So what's in it? One thing that is NOT in it, according to the outline, is the 5,000-pill limit that each retail pharmacy could receive each month. Some concerns had been raised that this could lead to shortages of pain medicine for legitimate patients.

Instead, the Department of Health will conduct a study on the distribution of addictive drugs in Florida and submit it to the Legislature by November.

What IS in the bill, according to Fasano's outline:

Enhanced administrative and criminal penalties for doctors who overprescribe narcotics and violate standards of care.

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