Under the terms of the agreement, Purdue will provide $2 million for development of a software program designed to detect when improper prescriptions are being issued or Schedule II narcotics are being diverted from their intended purpose.
The company also said it will provide $150,000 for a series of training programs to help Florida law enforcement agencies better understand and address the abuse and diversion of prescription drugs.
Once the prescription-monitoring program is developed, Florida will make the system available at no cost to any other state that requests it, Butterworth said.
"This program creates an ideal partnership between the medical and law enforcement communities that will allow us to track the potential misuse of controlled substances in a way that doesn't invade patient privacy or interfere with doctors' ability to treat their patients," Butterworth said.
By using the prescription-monitoring program, physicians will be able to determine whether a patient has received an inordinate number of similar prescriptions from other doctors.
Butterworth and Purdue announced a series of programs for law enforcement officers and agencies to be held around the state in 2003. The program, which will be presented in cooperation with Broward County Sheriff Ken Jenne, was largely designed by law enforcement professionals to help educate criminal justice agencies on the growing threat posed by prescription abuse and diversion.
"I know Florida's sheriffs and police chiefs will welcome these regional training programs," Jenne said. "This program will bring the officer on the street up to speed on what has become the fastest growing substance abuse problem in the United States."
The training seminars for law enforcement are scheduled to be held in Broward County, as well as St. Petersburg, Orlando, Jacksonville and Pensacola.
