Key West staves off 'pill mills'

Florida Keys News

Friday, September 14, 2012

Key West staves off 'pill mills'

Taking a proactive stance can eliminate problems down the road

BY GWEN FILOSA Citizen Staff
gfilosa@keysnews.com

Key West isn't home to a single pain management clinic that would qualify under Florida law -- or a drug addict's shorthand -- as a straight-up "pill mill," and city officials would like to keep it that way.

As Florida remains mired in an epidemic of prescription drug sales and dispensing that has left a wake of addiction, death and crime across the state, Key West has poppe...

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Whatever Happened To Doctors As Gods In The Community?

Submitted on Mon, 09/17/2012 - 7:17pm by Jet Stream

Doctors used to be looked up to by the population. We thought of them as heroes for saving lives and for having gone to school for 8 years while serving grueling residencies. Now days, we see them arrested over and over for being no more than the local corner drug slinger.

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No Pain pills in the keys???

Submitted on Sun, 09/16/2012 - 7:37am by jorgee

I can't believe they are saying the Keys doesn't have one pain clinic??? So funny! You might not have one but there sure are are a few Dr's that prescribe them to known addicts! I know of 2 in the lower keys which have for years! Monroe county doesn't have pill mills but there are sure are alot of pills being brought into Monroe county by dealers and users from not far away in dade in Broward! Monroe county is drug infested with drug dealers and users! Don't blame the Dr's, blame the users and abusers! If there wasn't a demand, there wouldn't be a supply!

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Pain meds

Submitted on Fri, 09/14/2012 - 11:54pm by Duffus

Their are a couple issues here that no one is addressing. Addicts are as the previous writer said, "Going to get what they need somehow". What this latest witchunt has caused is that people in need of pain killers can not now find any Dr. willing to prescripe them. They are all afraid to be labeled as a "pill mill Dr." I have taken a pain reliever for the past 15 years, when I started taking it I might take it 6 times a year, now I take it daily. Am I addicted? I think not. If I stay home and do no physical activity I suffer no withdrawal. If I go out, the pain in my back restricts me to about 1 block of walking. The pain medication doesn't have me putting on my dancing shoes but it does allow me a little more mobility. Our family Dr. left town 6 months ago and in that time we have not been able to find a Dr. that will address my problem. When I started this med I was in my 40's now I'm in my 60's, yes, I hurt more now than I did then. Who would expect older people to need more meds?

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pills

Submitted on Fri, 09/14/2012 - 6:25pm by michelie

There is no shortage of painkillers available in Key West. My soon to be ex-husband is a major painkiller addict. His pill supplier is his girlfriend and her mother. When he hasn't been able to get it from them he goes on the street to get them. What's incredible is that this girlfriend is a convicted drug felon and somehow she's able to get painkillers. His addiction is so bad, he would use his dying father's painkillers (and he was suffering from cancer). This is a terrible addiction and something really needs to be done.

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Good idea, but...

Submitted on Fri, 09/14/2012 - 4:18pm by Pat2K

That's great and I totally agree, however, it's not going to solve the problem of prescription drug abuse. Addicts will find a fix no matter what; it's just their nature. This has, however, seriously hurt those who have a legitimate need for pain medication, yet can't get it because the pharmacies either don't have it or you have to deal with the bald guy pharmacist at Walgreens with the God complex.

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What about?

Submitted on Fri, 09/14/2012 - 12:24pm by KeyWestDan

What about that upper keys doctor arrested by the feds who gave out 500,000 oxy and whose lawyer had the nerve to have an article printed saying the doctor did nothing wrong? Actually the Keys are way too small of a market for a big pill mill operation. Nobody is going to travel all the way here when they can just go to someplace in the Miami area. We also had a clinic here in Key West in the past that was pretty liberal but that was way before the pill mills made the news.

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They do travel here.

Submitted on Mon, 09/17/2012 - 12:34pm by Cruz

Actually, that is not true. People do travel here just to buy pills. I know of a woman, arrested for flying here from Cleveland, just to have scores of fake prescriptions filled in our over liberal pharmacies. I heard an agent talking about it in a recent public forum.

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What lawsuit??

Submitted on Sat, 09/15/2012 - 11:58pm by Merit

I brought the HIPPA lawsuit... and WON.. against Dr. Shapiro and his pill mill. It was the best thing I could have done. After that win, I was blackballed by doctors in Key West. I left that hell hole and now get REAL medical care. The events surrounding my leaving include the fact that female doctor at the Health Clinic went totally irrational and yelling and screaming at me for having the "nerve to see her after what I did to Dr. Shapiro". Well, KW... the whole thing isn't over yet... and from my distance, and with the ACLU, NIH and my lawyer, this type of thing will never happen to anyone again if I can help it. Bet the Citizen won't print this.... or any future information on the hypocracy withing the Key West medical community. Doctors refusing to give patients needed pain medication are in direct conflict of the oath they took to be doctors, and the ilk in Key West need to be rooted out and brought out into the sunshine. Thank you Dan for your comment... it sure is right on.

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REALLY??!!

Submitted on Fri, 09/14/2012 - 9:37am by Cruz

I know of a certain Big Pine Key doctor who has been feeding the local crack addicts and bums with oxy for years. They sell the oxy, report them stolen and voila, he gives them more, over and over again. That doesn't qualify??