AREA SAVES $ AS METH LABS CLOSE

A law restricting the sale of pseudoephedrine is saving money for
Iowa City area agencies, but it has not eliminated the widespread use
of methamphetamine in the state, local officials said.

The savings are a result of a reduction in home labs that produce
meth from pseudoephedrine, a nasal decongestant. These labs use
caustic, inflammable chemicals that are expensive to clean up and
have caused explosions and severe burns to people who use them
improperly. But since the law took effect, that has become a less
common occurrence.

"We have had no documented cases of methamphetamine-related burns
since then," said G. Patrick Kealey, the medical director of the UI
Hospitals and Clinics burn-treatment center. "What that means is the
effect upon the hospital and finances is enormous."

The hospital and, subsequently, the taxpayers, have had to absorb as
much as $2.8 million worth of services for methamphetamine cookers in
a given year, he said, a number expected to drop off now that large
quantities of pseudoephedrine are harder to come by.

Explosions during the drug's production often resulted in burns that
covered roughly one quarter of a person's body, requiring her or him
to have skin grafts and rehabilitation, Kealey said.

Bridget Burke, the principal researcher with the UIHC burn unit, said
it can cost up to $2,500 a day for a bed in her department.

Other costs include detoxifying the person and dealing with drug
abuse itself. Most of the people who have survived a meth-lab
explosion do not have insurance.

The Office of Drug Control Policy noted a drop of meth-lab incidents
in Johnson County from 34 in 2004 to nine in 2005, according to a
January briefing for Iowa legislators.

Statewide, lab finds fell from an average of 119 a month before the
law, to 20 a month after.

The reduction in meth labs has also freed up $2 million for law
enforcement statewide, according to the same agency.

Labs can cost thousands of dollars to clean, depending on the size,
Coralville police Detective Bill Clarahan said in September. To do it
fully, cleaners have to remove all carpeting, bedding, curtains, and
anything else exposed to the dangerous chemicals.

The Johnson County Drug Task Force will use money saved from lab
cleanups for more controlled buys, he said.

"Even though meth labs have gone down, it hasn't really solved the
meth problem," Clarahan said. "It's making it harder, but it's not
going to go away anytime soon."

Iowa drug-policy coordinator Marvin Van Haaften said enforcement is
shifting to imported meth, often in the purer form of crystal meth or
"ice," in a January report to lawmakers.

As medical director of trauma, burns, and critical-care services,
Kealey oversees the department in control of toxicity screens. He
agreed meth use persists and said it is the No. 1 illicit drug
involved in accidents.

A survey of hospital emergency rooms conducted by the National
Association of Counties reported in January that 47 percent of 200
responding hospitals - including 17 institutions in Iowa - said
methamphetamine is the top illegal drug observed.

Kealey said he saw the first case about 10 years ago, and he has
since seen the drug gain popularity.

"It's the gift that keeps on giving," he said bitterly. "It keeps on
keeping on."

DI Metro Editor Drew Kerr contributed to this report.