What I propose is a win-win proposition. Why should millions be wasted on lawyers on this case? Under the current path, there will be no winners, except for those with some personal vendetta. There is no state interest in pursuing this case.
Thisis a ridiculous statement. There is a huge state interest in pursuing this case. They are making Rush the prime example of the new doctor-shopping law. What better way to impress upon the citizens of FL the state-perceived importance of the law, than by going after a high-profile celeb?
Sure there is... to increase the power of the state over the sheeple. To make a political point (destroy the "conservative" voice). To employ cops, judges, lawyers, prison employees. To punish Rush for possesion of gov't-unapproved intoxicants. To punish his conspiracy to obtain those intoxicants. To perpetuate a war on the people & their liberties 100 years old and still going strong.
Rush probably has too much money to see the inside of a jail, but they'll get a lot of that money from him before it's over & it'll provide a good lesson to the sheep: "if we can take down someone like Rush, just think what ewe can do to you!"
By Bob Mahlburg and Doris Bloodsworth Tallahassee Bureau Posted December 3 2003
TALLAHASSEE · The head of the Florida Senate's health committee said Tuesday he is requesting a legislative investigation into doctors who overprescribe the powerful prescription painkiller OxyContin.
Sen. Burt Saunders, R-Naples, said he was prompted to act by a series of articles about prescription drug abuse in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and the Orlando Sentinel.
"It's not only very damaging to the public but costly to the state, so there's every reason to do this," he said.
OxyContin has been linked to more than 200 deaths in Florida, and many victims were taking prescriptions but suffered accidental overdoses or addiction. In addition to the human toll, Saunders said, billing abuses and Medicaid fraud involving the drug are wasting taxpayer money.
"The state is losing tens of millions if not hundreds of millions of dollars because of this," he said. "It's a huge issue."
Saunders said he will ask Senate President Jim King next week to name a select panel of legislators to investigate problems, hear testimony from experts and recommend changes in state law.
Gov. Jeb Bush on Tuesday directed his drug czar James McDonough to "lay the groundwork for a comprehensive solution to this fatal and expensive form of drug abuse" during a meeting set for Dec. 12 with several state agency heads and Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist.
Among the issues Bush cited in a letter to McDonough was "doctor shopping and pharmacy hopping," suspect Internet pharmacy sales, adulteration and illegal importation of prescription drugs "and other various allegations of illegalities."
"We must preserve the sanctity of the doctor-patient relationship, guarantee the best possible pain management and medical services, and ensure the privacy of the individual. At the same time, however, we must halt the widespread abuses …and decrease the deadly and expensive consequences that come with such abuses," Bush wrote.
Am I missing the state interest?