Pubdate: Sun, 21 Aug 2005
Source: Daily Advance, The (NC)
Copyright: 2005sCox Newspapers, Inc.
Contact:  http://www.dailyadvance.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1700
Author: Toby Tate
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

ANTI-METH LEGISLATION COULD AFFECT COLD MEDICINE PRICES

If proposed state legislation prohibiting the sale of medications 
containing the drugs ephedrine and pseudoephedrine becomes law, it could 
affect the price of cold medicine presently sold on local pharmacy shelves.

The reason for the legislation? Methamphetamine, which makes its way 
through illegal street drug trade under the names "meth," "speed," and 
"crank," can be derived by breaking down ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, 
which is found in certain cold medicines.

Ephedrine also can be chemically broken down by mixing it with other 
readily available chemicals and used to create methamphetamine.

Once created -- often in illegal drug labs operating out of private homes 
- -- meth is an addictive stimulant that affects the central nervous system 
and in high doses can cause hallucinations, paranoia and extreme rage. An 
overdose can cause convulsions and death.

Because ephedrine hydrochloride, or Chinese ephedra, is used in sinus 
medication such as Suphedrine and NyQuil and diet supplements like 
Metabolife and Advocare, the legislation has the potential to affect more 
people than just drug users and drug dealers.

Under the proposed legislation, customers wishing to purchase these common 
medications -- harmless when used properly for medicinal purposes -- would 
be required to show photo identification to purchase cold tablets 
containing pseudoephedrine.

Purchases would be limited to no more than 9 grams of pseudoephedrine 
within a 30-day period without a prescription. Liquid and gel products 
would not be restricted since they are not commonly used to produce meth in 
North Carolina, however.

David Work, executive director of the North Carolina Pharmacy Board in 
Chapel Hill, believes the prices of cold medicine definitely will be 
affected if the legislation becomes law.

"It will affect the price as well as the accessibility since it will be 
behind the counter," Work said. "Law enforcement is making a big push to 
get this through, and politically, (the new law) has a lot of traction with 
the state House of Representatives, so something's going to happen with it."

At least one local pharmacy owner said that he is not sure how the 
legislation will affect prices. But prices could be affected if pharmacies 
are required to keep the medicines behind the counter, William Owens, 
co-owner of Todd's Pharmacy, said.

"We haven't had anything in writing from the FDA that has told us to keep 
stuff behind the counter," Owens said. "If it happens, though, it may 
affect what the manufacturer charges for (cold medicine)."

The steps for creating meth can be found easily on the Internet, which is 
part of the problem, said Noelle Talley, spokeswoman for the N.C. Attorney 
General's Office. Her boss, Attorney General Roy Cooper, is the driving 
force behind the proposed new law.

"That's the real danger," Talley said. "Meth can be made in people's houses 
and the chemicals used are very toxic and can explode. It can affect 
children who live in the homes as well." She said children can breathe the 
toxic fumes or be injured from chemical explosions. As many as 124 children 
were found living in North Carolina homes used as illegal meth labs in 2004.

In 1999, the first year that meth labs were reported in North Carolina, SBI 
agents discovered nine labs. Since then, the number has skyrocketed, with 
agents shutting down 322 labs in 2004 and more than 223 so far this year.

Capt. Frank Koch of the Elizabeth City Police Department said meth busts 
are rare in Elizabeth City.

"We've made a couple of arrests for methamphetamines in the area over the 
last couple of years," Koch said. "It hasn't got that prevalent here yet, 
but it's starting to come into the area. We haven't dismantled any labs. We 
have sent some of our officers to a school sponsored by the state that 
deals with" met labs.

Emily Walker, a pharmacist for the Wal-Mart pharmacy, said the store keeps 
medicines such as Suphedrine behind the counter and will sell no more than 
two packages to any one customer. She said the problem is out of control in 
many cities, however.

"I have a friend who is a firefighter in Portsmouth (Va.) and they have to 
do special training for meth labs," she said. "He said they couldn't 
believe how many boxes of cold medicines from China they would find in 
these labs."

The President's Office of National Drug Control Policy said that in 2002, 
meth use remained highest in the western and southwestern U.S., as well as 
in Hawaii. Though use is low in the southeast, it is a growing problem, 
Talley said.

"We don't have the problem here that some states do which have thousands 
and thousands of labs, but it's on the rise," she said.

Laws restricting the sale of cold medicines containing ephedrine and 
pseudoephedrine which have already been put in place have had a huge effect 
in many states, Talley said.

"The first state to pass the new law was Oklahoma, which has seen an 80 
percent drop in meth labs since that time," she said. "Tennessee 
unanimously approved a law patterned after Oklahoma's in April and has 
since seen a 39 percent decline in meth lab seizures. In Iowa, where a 
similar law took effect last month, the number of meth labs is already down 
by as much as 75 percent."
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MAP posted-by: Beth