Pubdate: Mon, 03 Jul 2006 Source: Times, The (Munster IN) Copyright: 2006 The Munster Times Contact: http://www.nwitimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/832 Author: Valerie Dowdle, Medill News Service Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine) AG TOUTS TRACKING OF METH INGREDIENT ILLINOIS: Madigan praises Walgreens for creating national database Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan praised Walgreens last week for the effectiveness of its new electronic database that enforces legal limits on how much of the stimulant pseudoephedrine an individual can purchase. The first of its kind, Walgreens' national database improves on the old-fashioned system of logging pseudoephedrine purchases on paper. Pseudoephedrine is used to make the illegal drug methamphetamine. According to Phil Burgess, Walgreens' national director of Pharmacy Affairs, the paper-based tracking system proved ineffective partly because of the difficulty of keeping accurate handwritten records. At a Walgreens pharmacy in the Loop on Wednesday, Madigan and Burgess demonstrated the virtues of the new system. Customers who buy pseudoephedrine-containing medicines, such as Claritin and Sudafed, are required to provide a state ID card and sign a log. The system then records each individual's name, address and state ID number, along with the details of the sale. Pseudoephedrine is a chemical compound often used in decongestants. A major drawback of the paper logging system was that it only tracked transactions within each Walgreens store, not among all stores. Burgess noted that the old system made it simple to evade the federal law without interstate cooperation. And, Madigan said, since Illinois' neighboring states lead the country in the number of illicit meth labs, implementing a national tracking system is vital. By Sept. 30, nationwide restrictions will be placed on the purchase of pseudoephedrine, Burgess said. An individual buying products that contain the stimulant must be 18 years old, and customers will be limited to 3.6 grams of pseudoephedrine per transaction. While these federal restrictions will set the minimum standards for regulation, Illinois joined the roster of about 20 states that place additional controls on the sales of the drug. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman