Gov. Bush lobbies for drug-tracking database

Sun Sentinel ^ | April 10, 2004 | Mark Hollis

[tdadams]

TALLAHASSEE -- A proposal Gov. Jeb Bush is championing to create a massive electronic tracking system of who is prescribing and who is using prescription drugs is in trouble in the Florida Legislature.

With three weeks left in the 2004 lawmaking session, Bush is doing high-pressure lobbying to persuade leaders of his own party about the merits of the database.

It could allow doctors, designated medical assistants and pharmacists to look up online the pharmacy records of patients over the age of 17 to ensure they haven't been shopping for multiple prescriptions.

Every pharmacy record for certain classes of potentially addictive drugs, such as anxiety-fighting Xanax, mood-changing Valium and painkilling OxyContin, would be monitored.

[snipped]

Bush warns that if legislators don't approve the monitoring system by July, Florida risks losing nearly $2 million that Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of OxyContin, pledged toward the creation of the database.

[tdadams]

Update on an ongoing concern.

Who knew our freedom and privacy were for sale for only $2 million. I guess Jeb thinks freedom is just that cheap.

[tdadams]

ping

[xrp]

Another reason why the Bush dynasty must be stopped after G W Bush completes his 2nd term in 2009.

[Enterprise]

Well, once again, there comes into play the issue of "privacy." In essence it would allow a certain group of people to look at medical records of thousands of people who might not want their records being scanned. On the face of it, it sounds like a violation of HIPPA. But where the Government is concerned, what does the law matter?

[Wolfie]

Don't worry about the States, the Feds are already working on a nationwide plan.

Bush's Prescription Pill Police State

[Enterprise]

Yes, I guess you are correct and I have simply failed to see all the good that can come from this.

[tdadams]

Welcome to Free Republic. D U like what you see so far?

[Finalapproach29er]

I agree. More big brother from the Bush family.

[robertpaulsen]

I wonder how much of this is in response to the Rush Limbaugh brouhaha and the nattering nabobs of negativity screaming that, "Something needs to be done!".

So, Bush lays out what is going to be needed to "do something about it", knowing full well no one will accept the police state in which it would result.

It's called "politics".

[TKDietz]

I'm usually one of those posting against the excesses of the drug war, but I don't see a big problem with a system for monitoring how much of these addictive drugs people are buying. A lot of the drugs like Oxycontin and Xanax found on the street were first purchased with prescriptions, and there are a lot of addicts who use multiple doctors for multiple prescriptions. It seems reasonable to have a database to help put a stop to these practices and to help identify those that might have a problem with drugs. Of course I would rather see them treat addiction as a health problem rather than a criminal problem, but either way such a database would be helpful.