Investigators say more prescription pills than ever are making their way to the Tri-Cities and the Washington County Anti-Drug Coalition says Florida may be to blame. According to the coalition's director Jennifer Berven, many people from our region are hopping on planes or getting in their cars and heading to Florida in search of narcotics.
"It's flooding the market here," Berven said. "It's everywhere. It's more accessible."
In Tennessee, pharmacists and doctors are able to monitor who is receiving and prescribing narcotics thanks to a state-mandated database, one that hasn't existed in Florida.
"They just have multiple pain management clinics where there's really no tracking system," Washington County Sheriff's Office Investigator Sgt. Sam Phillips said. "You can go to one and then turn around and go to another and go to another...One case we had in federal court as recently as October, (a husband and wife) said they had a minivan and they would...sell seats in their van for people to ride down, then spend the money, and go to multiple doctors there in Florida."
Phillips, who is also a member of the Tennessee Prescription Drug Diversion Task Force, says these people are not just bringing back pills, they're also bringing back false prescriptions. With that in mind, many pharmacies have stopped filling prescriptions that originate in Florida.
Florida recently passed a law designed to curb this trend. It includes a statewide database similar to the one in Tennessee. However, it could take a full year before it's up and running.
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