CURBS ON PILLS CUT METH BUSTS

States Weigh Rules On Medicine Sales

TULSA, OKLAHOMA -- In the 10 months since Oklahoma pharmacies became the
first in the nation to keep popular cold medications behind the counter and
require identification to buy them, seizures of illegal methamphetamine
labs have fallen by 80 percent, state law enforcement officials say.

Now, more than 25 states are considering similar legislation, in the face
of opposition from the pharmaceutical and retail industries. Oregon
recently passed a bill, and other states are close behind.

The law classifies pseudoephedrine an ingredient in decongestants such as
Sudafed, and a vital ingredient in meth production as a controlled
substance. That takes it out of convenience and grocery stores and limits
the amount consumers can buy at pharmacies.

"We saw the seizures of clandestine meth labs increase month after month in
the state until the law was enacted in April," Democratic Gov. Brad Henry
said. "The only explanation is that the law had an impact."

Methamphetamine is a powerful stimulant that impairs the central nervous
system. In an Indiana town last month, a 10-year-old girl was abducted and
killed to keep her from revealing that meth was being cooked in an
apartment near her home.

According to a 2002 National Survey on Drug Use and Health report, 12.4
million Americans 12 and older had tried meth at least once, with most
users between 18 and 34. Last year, more than 3,000 children were rescued
during seizures of more than 15,000 meth labs nationwide, according to the
federal Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Similar federal laws to classify pseudoephedrine as a restricted drug have
been introduced in Congress to stem the production and distribution of the
drug. Many of the proposed laws would ban certain cold medicine tablets
from being sold anywhere but in pharmacies, would require they be kept
behind the counter and would require customers to show identification.

Scott Rowland, general counsel for the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and
Dangerous Drugs, said, "We're just trying to get a breather trying to stop
the mom-and-pop labs from springing up on every corner, so we can hit the
larger problem with traditional law enforcement techniques."

Law enforcement officials estimate that more than 80 percent of the
nation's meth supply comes from Mexican or California "super labs." But
they note that small-time domestic production diverts resources from the
larger trafficking problems.

Consumer, industry and retail advocates maintain that the law is
inconvenient for customers and pharmacists and could hurt sales.

"Consumers do not have the access that they used to have to various
products, and the logbook is very cumbersome," said Mary Ann Wagner, vice
president of pharmacy regulatory affairs at the National Association of
Drug Store Chains.

A spokesman for Pfizer Inc., which makes Sudafed, said that while the
company supports restrictions, it does not favor classifying the products
as restricted drugs. Consumers Health Care Products Association spokesman
Virginia Cox says the Oklahoma law hurts people in rural areas who may have
to drive 30 miles to a drugstore.

Sidebar OKLAHOMA'S LAW

The law classifies pseudoephedrine -- an ingredient in decongestants such
as Sudafed and a vital ingredient in meth production -- as a controlled
substance. That takes it out of convenience and grocery stores and limits
the amount consumers can buy at pharmacies.

The Oklahoma legislation was approved by the Legislature after three
Oklahoma state troopers were shot and killed by meth users. Customers can
buy no more than nine grams, or about 12 boxes of the drug, over a 30-day
period.

THE WASHINGTON POST