As the state of Florida ramps up its campaign against pill mills, new state data show sales of oxycodone dropped 17 percent in the first five months of 2011, according to a report by the Miami Herald.
Last year, before most of the state's new anti-pill mill laws kicked in, deaths caused by prescription drugs rose about 9 percent, resulting in about 5,600 deaths.
Since March, the new Statewide Drug Enforcement Strike Force has targeted distribution and supply points across the state, resulting in 937 arrests, including of 17 doctors, and the seizure of 252,410 pharmaceutical pills and nearly $1.7 million in cash.
Read the Miami Herald report on the drop in oxycodone sales in Florida.
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