Pubdate: Tue, 19 Apr 2005
Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution (GA)
metro_24465a9e068691d50065.html
Copyright: 2005 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Contact: http://www.ajc.com/opinion/content/opinion/letters/sendletter.html
Website: http://www.accessatlanta.com/ajc/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/28
Author: Jill Young Miller
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

PERDUE TO SIGN METHAMPHETAMINE BILL

Sudafed and similar cold and sinus medicines will be sold only from behind 
Georgia store counters under legislation Gov. Sonny Perdue is scheduled to 
sign today.

In an effort to discourage people from making the illegal stimulant 
methamphetamine, drugs with the sole active ingredient of pseudoephedrine 
no longer will be sold off the shelf as of July 1. Customers will have to 
ask for them. The law also will bar retailers from selling more than three 
packages of the medicines at once.

Pseudoephedrine is a key ingredient used in making meth, which law 
enforcement officials say is epidemic in Georgia.

The law will override stricter ordinances that some communities, including 
Douglas and Floyd counties, have adopted. They will have until Jan. 1 to 
comply with the statewide standard.

Supporters say the new law will discourage meth "cooks" from buying the 
large amounts of pseudoephedrine needed to make the drug. Meth often is 
made in dangerous makeshift labs in kitchens and sheds.

Critics, however, say the bill isn't tough enough. Some legislators had 
wanted to allow only licensed pharmacists to sell the products and to make 
customers show a photo ID and sign a log.

"It's not as strong a bill as we had hoped for, but certainly it's better 
than not doing anything," said Peggy Walker, a Douglas County Juvenile 
Court judge and member of a local methamphetamine task force. In Douglas 
County, customers buying Sudafed and similar medicines must show a photo ID 
and sign a log.

The new law will require wholesalers who sell Sudafed and similar drugs to 
obtain a license through the state Board of Pharmacy. It also will 
encourage retailers to participate in the Georgia Meth Watch Program to 
spot suspicious customers and to raise public awareness about meth.

Perdue is scheduled to sign the bill during a ceremony at a Food Lion in 
Chickamauga in northwest Georgia, an area that has been especially hard hit 
by meth abuse. The bill's chief sponsors are from the area: Rep. Jay Neal 
(R-LaFayette) and Sen. Jeff Mullis (R-Chickamauga).
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MAP posted-by: Elizabeth Wehrman