While there was good news this week with the drop in oxycodone sales in Florida, Pinellas County is still struggling with the negative consequences of prescription drug abuse in the community. "This is still, for us, the number one public safety issue that we face," said Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri. "And that's why we're making such a dedicated and concentrated effort to address these problems." Laurie Serra lost her stepson a little over three years ago to a prescription drug overdose. Serra has now joined the Sheriff's Office task force called NOPE (Narcotics Overdose Prevention and Education). Serra is passionate about educating other parents about the dangers of prescription drug abuse. "When you consider that one person is dying every 31 hours in our county, we know we still have a problem. And we have to be vigilant to erase it." ...read more

A Pinellas County candlelight vigil remembered victims of prescription drug abuse. Those who attended the vigil are frustrated by Florida's response to the prescription drug epidemic and the state's reduced spending for drug abuse and mental illness programs.  Largo Mayor Pat Gerard said that the prescription drugs are "a plague in our community. I personally lost several family members to addiction," Gerard said. "Yet our state lawmakers in Tallahassee believe that they fixed a problem that only gets worse."  Florida has long been an unfortunate epicenter for prescription drug abuse and developed a negative reputation for pill mills. Recent intensive crackdowns on pill mills and those who continue to prescribe the highly addictive pain pills has shone the spotlight on the problem. ...read more