Pubdate: Tue, 08 Nov 2005 Source: Florida Today (Melbourne, FL) Copyright: 2005 Florida Today Contact: http://www.flatoday.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/532 Note: Does not accept out of town LTEs on drug policy Author: Mike Madden , Gannett News Service COLD MEDICINES HARDER TO BUY Congress May Follow States' Anti-Meth Laws Restricting Sale WASHINGTON - Finding relief for that runny nose might get tougher soon, thanks to other people who are using common cold medicines to make an illegal, highly addictive drug. Following the lead of more than 30 states, Congress is considering legislation to restrict sales of pseudoephedrine, the main active ingredient in Sudafed, Claritin-D and other popular cold remedies. It's also a key ingredient in methamphetamine, a drug that has swept the country the past decade, overwhelming law enforcement officials and devastating communities. Under the congressional proposals, pills containing pseudoephedrine would be kept behind pharmacy counters, and purchasers would have to show identification and sign a form each time they bought the pills. Buying more than 7.5 grams per month would be banned. That's about two boxes of full-strength Sudafed. The legislation also would commit more resources to local anti-meth law enforcement programs and to stop the importation of ingredients used to make meth. The Senate already has approved the legislation. The House is considering a measure that wouldn't restrict pseudoephedrine sales. The two chambers are working to settle the differences between the bills. The Senate proposal, sponsored by Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and Jim Talent, R-Mo., is based on an Oklahoma law that took effect in recent years. Oklahoma officials say it has cut dramatically meth production in the state, though crystal meth - made from different chemicals - still poses a problem. "It's a wonderful law," said Charles Pearson, the sheriff in Muskogee County, Okla., where reports of meth labs have fallen dramatically since cold medicines containing pseudoephedrine were put behind pharmacy counters. "As far as finding your backyard methamphetamine lab, it's just a thing of the past. We still got 'em, we probably always will, but it's nothing like it was." Meth has become a national scourge. The fiercely addictive drug hooks users, taxes social service agencies and contaminates locations where it is "cooked." Congress has sought to deal with the problem, but many states in the Midwest and the South have already set up rigorous laws designed to crack down. National estimates of the costs of combating the drug are not available, but local officials around the country say meth takes up more and more of their resources. Tennessee earmarked $7 million for anti-meth programs this year, according to Gov. Phil Bredesen's office. Indiana's anti-meth task force estimated that the drug costs the state at least $100 million each year. Meth cost Portland, Ore., and its surrounding county $102.3 million last year, according to an analysis by ECONorthwest. Oklahoma's pseudoephedrine law has been well received by the public, even though it makes it harder to get cold medicine, law enforcement officials and pharmacists say. Police can pull pharmacies' logs of who buys pseudoephedrine, allowing them to track anyone who tries to buy the maximum amount allowed at more than one store per month. The National Association of Chain Drug Stores, a trade group that represents pharmacies and drug stores, supports the national proposal, as do several national law enforcement groups. The powerful lobby for the drug industry, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, says it hasn't taken a position. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman