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Legislative Fix to 2012 Pill Mill Bill Passes House Judiciary Committee

A bill addressing problems with last year's prescription pill mill bill has cleared the House Judiciary Committee. House Speaker Greg Stumbo is sponsoring the bill, which reduces some tough regulations that followed the pill mill bill.  The legislation, House Bill 217, requires hospitals and long term care facilities to still pull KASPER reports, but lessens other regulations on them.

Stumbo told lawmakers that the bill would help codify easier regulations that were recently published and that the effort to crackdown on prescription pill abuse was effective.

"But you have a reason to be proud if you supported that bill because it's working. It's working from Pikeville to Paducah," he says.

Stumbo told lawmakers he believes the bill has support from Senate President Robert Stivers and Gov. Steve Beshear. It also said the Kentucky Medical Association, the main voice of complaints about the original bill, was not actively opposing this year's legislation.

"It's something that everybody as far as we know, is in agreement that it addresses many of the concerns without taking a step back on the tough requirements," Stumbo  says.

The bill unanimously passed committee.

Kenny Colston is the Frankfort Bureau Chief for Kentucky Public Radio (a collaborative effort of public radio stations in Kentucky). Colston has covered Kentucky's Capitol and state government since 2010. He is a Louisville native, and a graduate of the University of Kentucky. When he's not tracking down stories about Kentucky politics, you can often find him watching college sports, particularly football.
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