Florida laws regulating pain management practices and prescription painkillers were supposed to crack down on the state's pill mill problem, but they have created barriers to care for many patients, according to two ABC 7 reports.

Sarasota County in Florida has set new fines for pain management clinics violating regulations that could cost clinics up to $1,000, according to a Herald-Tribune report.

Florida, often seen as the epicenter of the nation's "pill mill" epidemic, has seen a 97 percent decrease in oxycodone purchases by state physicians since 2010, according to a DEA report.

Spine specialist Steven Svabek, DO, recently opened the doors to his new office at the Orthopedic and Spine Center in Margate, Fla., according to a news release.

Starting today, Florida physicians can now look up patients on the statewide prescription drug database, according to a My Fox Orlando report.

The Hospital for Special Surgery has announced the establishment of HSS Spine & Sport in Jupiter, Fla., the first expansion beyond the hospital's New York City location, according to a Hospital for Special Surgery news release.

Florida's Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, meant to stop unauthorized use of prescription painkillers, goes into effect on Sept. 1, according to a St. Petersburg Times report.

According to a report by the Sun Sentinel, protesters have been picketing a Fort Lauderdale, Fla., pain clinic, claiming it is a pill mill that is responsible for the death of a 57-year-old nurse from a prescription drug overdose.

According to a report by ABC News, Florida authorities report that 34 pain patients treated just in 2011 by Joseph Hernandez, MD, are dead and they are considering pressing charges against him for those deaths.

Peter A. Indelicato, MD, chair of sports medicine for the department of orthopedic surgery and rehabilitation at the University of Florida, will be installed as the 40th president of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine next week, according to an organization news release.