Council suspended rules that require three readings and passed the ordinance as an emergency.
Before passage, Portsmouth City Solicitor Mike Jones took the time to answer a question he had previously received from First Ward Councilman Kevin Johnson as to whether the ordinance was in line with the aspects of the bill currently before the state legislature dealing with the same issue.
"It is somewhat more restrictive," Jones said. "However, as you know, the proposed House Bill 93 has passed the House and is currently in the Senate. At last check it was in committee. So there is a possibility of changes."
Before any entity will be licensed to operate in the city there is a laundry list of requirements including the name, address and phone numbers of stockholders, members and/or partners; the name, address, and phone number of the physician or physicians who are responsible for prescribing or dispensing of prescriptions for controlled substances, and malpractice insurance.
Written verification is also required that the facility has registered with the Ohio Automated Rx Reporting System (OARRS) of the Board of Pharmacy, and they must accompany their application with a license fee of $1,000. Within 30 days of the first anniversary of the issuance of the initial permit, they also must submit an application for renewal. After the first year, that process would require application every three years.
These regulations apply to new pain clinics and those already operating in the city.
Another section of the ordinance calls for the Department of Health to make periodic, unannounced inspections of the premises whenever it deems necessary and in no event less than twice per year.
Scioto County Attorney John McHenry wrote the ordinance and presented it to Jones for fine-tuning.
FRANK LEWIS may be reached at (740) 353-3101, ext. 232, or flewis@heartlandpublications.com.
Maybe our Commissioners are out recruiting a new Ford Motor Company, General Motors Company, or now trying to see if Macy's Dept Store is wanting to open up another facility that hired 2,100 people in Charleston, West Virginia, that possibly could have been located in Portsmouth, Ohio if they and the SOGP had offered them a package like 21 Ohio Cities did, 7 from Kentucky and 8 from West Virginia, to create 2,100 jobs, but zero package to locate here from the City of Portsmouth, or zero incentative package from your Scioto County Commissioners, they were up at Franklin Furnace telling the State of Ohio not to close a facilty down, when they were the first set of County Commissioners in the history of the State of Ohio, since Ohio became a State in 1803, and 88 counties, that were put on Fiscal Emergency.
Just the kind of Commissioners we need, they cant balance their own budget,they close their own local Juvenile Facility down because they dont have the funds to run it, but tell the State of Ohio dont close your Juvenile facility down.
Its called "Scioto County Mentality", thats why no Industry comes here. The goofy people that run the show !
Or that PPD, ain't that a hoot. Or the state high way trouper have to come in which will be consistent with the State coming in on the deficit budgets, the perfect storm and "dah bouys" can't control that. Watch.
Did not a private citizen present the ordinance to the city council at a Legal public meeting like the chief would call it?
Who will clarify that Frank?
Emergency action too, did Albrecht do it again? An action that a city council behind the curve must do a lot and so the public their constituents do not find out? Covertly the opposite of transparency?
Oh, oh, licensing, the city council slipped up making that a precedent. Next will be landlords and rental property?
Only every three years, that's a long time.
No grandfathering clause, a slip up by the corrupt, making the good bad. Is the perfect storm coming?
Jones is doing his job outside of the prosecutor part? Frank did the Editor approve this article?
Good job Frank, back to the next day reporting not later in the week, you just scooped the underground media the up and coming media. Get your resume out Frank to Lester Leedom one of your homies.
HOW MUCH LONGER DO WE HAVE TO PUT UP WITH THIS DERILICTION OF DUTY?!?!?!?!?!?!??