After facing delays and controversy, Florida’s prescription-drug database will start operating in September and October, according to the state Department of Health.
Pharmacies and doctors who dispense controlled substances, such as OxyContin and Xanax, will start reporting information to the database Sept. 1, a department news release said. The information needs to be reported within seven days of dispensing.
Doctors and pharmacists will be able to start using the system Oct. 17 as they make decisions about prescriptions for the potentially dangerous drugs. The database, approved by lawmakers in 2009, was originally supposed to start operating in December 2010. But it faced delays because of a bid dispute and also ran into opposition from Gov. Rick Scott and some lawmakers who were worried that it could violate privacy rights.
Scott and the lawmakers, however, backed off the opposition this spring and approved a broader bill aimed at curbing the state’s problems with prescription drug abuse and pill mills. Those changes included limiting the number of doctors who can dispense painkillers in their offices.
