OVER-THE-COUNTER DRUGS WITH METH INGREDIENTS TO STAY ON STORE SHELVES

'Not An Issue' In B.C., RCMP Insist

Over-the-counter medications containing ingredients used in making
crystal methamphetamine will stay within reach in B.C.

Solicitor-General John Les and the College of Pharmacists of B.C.
said there is no evidence to suggest retail products like Sudafed and
Benadryl fuel meth manufacturing in this province and they will be
allowed to remain on grocery store shelves.

Police agree.

"Right now, it's not an issue," said

Cpl. Scot Rintoul of the RCMP's drug awareness section. "Last year,
there was not one meth lab [of the 30] we went to where cold remedies
were used."

The same cannot be said for Washington state where so-called "Mom and
Pop" or "Beavis and Butthead" meth labs using the medicines have
blossomed. Police in Washington busted 1,350 in 2004 alone.

The larger issue in B.C., according to Rintoul, are significant gaps
in regulations when it comes to the sale and possession of the
precursor ingredients in bulk. Those gaps allow "super labs,"
facilities capable of producing meth at a high rate.

Federal law requires that companies importing, exporting,
manufacturing and distributing the chemicals be licensed.

Licensed importers can then sell to other licence holders or private
individuals, as long as those people fill out a purchase agreement
and promise they are the end-users. Those agreements are not passed
on to police or Health Canada, except by warrant.

The College of Pharmacists asked members to voluntarily restrict
access to the medicinal products in question in 2004. Some stores
have put the products behind the counter.

However, said Gerry Harrington of the Non-Prescription Drug
Manufacturer's Association of Canada, the average pharmacy sells
between 30 and 50 of the products daily.

Asking pharmacists to retrieve the medicines in question "is a huge
new addition to the workloads," he said.

Harrington said B.C.'s approach of training employees to watch for
suspicious purchases is effective. If the number of reports of
suspicious sales of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine products increases,
the province will consider further measures.