Pubdate: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 Source: Elizabethton Star (TN) Copyright: 2005 Elizabethton Newspapers, Inc. Contact: http://www.starhq.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1478 Author: Julie Fann, Star Staff Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?159 (Drug Courts) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth) GOVERNOR SIGNS ANTI-METH LEGISLATION Gov. Phil Bredesen on Wednesday signed legislation requiring that pharmacies and retailers take measures to reduce the sale of cold medicines used to manufacture methamphetamine. Following the signing of the law, pharmacies now have 30 days to move cold and sinus medicines containing pseudoephedrine or ephedrine behind the counter, and local retailers that do not have pharmacies have 24 hours to remove them from shelves and stop selling them. "This law needed to be passed, and I plan to enforce it to the full extent," said Carter County Sheriff John Henson Wednesday afternoon. "This way, they will have to ask for it (cold medicine) and won't be able to buy it in large amounts. It should send up a red flag." Pseudoephedrine is a decongestant which is the vital ingredient in methamphetamine manufacturing. The only products exempt from the new limits are those in the form of liquids or soft gelatin or liquid-filled capsules, which currently are not deemed viable in the meth manufacturing process. Those who buy cold medicines to make meth typically do so from larger retailers rather than small pharmacies, according to Jim Anderson, pharmacist at Union Prescription Shop, 402 Bemberg Road. Anderson said his business will comply with the law, though he and his staff haven't experienced a problem. "If someone wanted us to order, like, a dozen, we would not do it anyhow. Making it requires multiples, but there is no reason why someone couldn't buy two here and three somewhere else and get the amount. Usually, folks who are trying to (make meth) don't come to places like ours," Anderson said, adding that some manufacturers of cold and flu products are reformulating them without pseudoephedrine or ephedrine. A clerk at the Sunoco gas station located at 525 U.S. Highway 91 in Stoney Creek, however, said the store moved all cold medicines containing pseudoephedrine behind the counter two months ago because staff had noticed some of the medicine was missing. Dariel Wakefield, pharmacy manager at the new super Wal-Mart on West Elk Avenue, said Wal-Mart will comply with procedures set down by the governor. In addition to moving cold and sinus products behind the pharmacy counter, the new law, according to a press release from the Governor's Communications Office, makes several other changes including: - Closing the so-called "personal-use loophole" in criminal law, which allows meth cooks to secure lighter penalties by claiming they manufactured the drug only for personal use. - - Requiring health professionals to report meth lab-related burns and injuries to local law enforcement, similar to the existing requirement to report gun-shot and knife wounds. - - Creating an online registry within the Department of Environment and Conservation listing properties quarantined by law enforcement due to meth-lab contamination. A separate registry will be created within the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation listing the names and offenses of convicted meth cooks. Separate from the legislation, the governor's proposed budget for 2005-2006, according to the press release, includes nearly $7 million to attack the meth problem in Tennessee. Among other items, the budget includes: - $2.4 million for increased criminal penalties for meth-related crimes, including the closure of the personal-use loophole. - $1.7 million to launch a drug court pilot project endorsed by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy to test the effectiveness of a combination of treatment and light incarceration. - $1.5 million to launch a statewide education and public awareness campaign. - $600,000 to provide meth-lab response training to law enforcement and other first responders. Meth, a powerfully addictive stimulant that affects the central nervous system, is produced in clandestine laboratories across Tennessee using inexpensive over-the-counter ingredients in drugs like Sudafed. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration estimates that Tennessee now accounts for 75 percent of meth lab seizures in the Southeast, according to the press release from the governor's office. From October 2003 to August 2004, law enforcement authorities seized nearly 1,200 labs in the state -- a 397 percent increase from 2000, the press release states. The drug is particularly harmful to children. The Tennessee Department of Children's Services reports more than 700 children were involved in meth-related investigations over the past six months. Especially at risk are infants and toddlers living in homes where toxic lab emissions and residue settle on floors and furniture. In signing the bill into law, Bredesen acknowledged the war against meth will be a "moving target" that will require a continued coordinated commitment from the federal, state and local governments. "We're not going to solve the meth problem overnight," he said. "But if we stay focused on the fundamental issues, then we're going to have an impact and make a difference." - --- MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager