Prescription drug abuse and the potential for a moratorium on new pain clinics in Orange County will be the subject of in-depth examination and discussion when Orange County Commissioners meet on Tuesday. Commissioners will listen to subject matter experts present on the issues and receive testimony from a father who recently lost his 20-year-old son to a prescription drug overdose.
Lame duck Mayor Crotty plans to urge the Board of County Commissioners to adopt an ordinance that would place a moratorium on permits for new pain management clinics to give staff time to craft regulations in line with recent changes in state law aimed at protecting legitimate medical establishments while shutting down so called “pill mills.”
The proposed ordinance includes, a moratorium on permits for new pain clinics, a prohibition of “cash only” as the only form of payment accepted at pain clinics, establishment of a work-group to consider using zoning and land use regulation on pain management clinics, and consideration of regulating operating hours for pain management clinics.
If the Board approves the recommendation of moving forward with the adoption of the ordinance the approval would go for a final vote on December 7th, 2010.
Orange County Mayor-elect Teresa Jacobs, in the run up to the mayoral elections, had said she fully supported “efforts to curb any unregulated growth of so-called “pill mills” in Orange county”, and would ensure that an ordinance is passed to combat such a trend, should it extend into her term.
