COMBAT METH ACT PASSES U.S. SENATE

Bill Co-Sponsored By Indiana's Evan Bayh

A bill that proposes to limit the purchase of drugs used to make
methamphetamine and provide at least $18 million for child services, law
enforcement and addiction treatment passed Thursday in the U.S. Senate.

The Combat Meth Act, co-sponsored by Sen. Evan Bayh, would restrict the
sale of pseudoephedrine products nationwide by requiring retailers to keep
the drugs behind pharmacy counters. If passed by the House of
Representatives, it would also restrict the sale of pseudoephedrine to 7.5
grams per month, about 250 30-milligram tablets.

The act is part of the Commerce Justice Science appropriations bill and
must be approved by the House before it can be signed into law by the
president.

Under Indiana law and Vigo County ordinance, customers can buy about 100
pseudoephedrine tablets per week without a prescription.

"The ultimate challenge is to keep people from being addicted to meth,"
Bayh said during a Thursday conference call. "This is a uniform national
standard that cannot be undercut by neighboring states."

Included in the act is $13 million for methamphetamine treatment and the
creation of a national methamphetamine treatment center that would research
effective treatments.

An additional $5 million is provided in the bill for children whose parents
are addicted to the drug. Indiana has spent about $100 million a year in
response to the methamphetamine problem, Bayh said. Bayh did not outline
any penalties to retailers or buyers if the purchasing limit is exceeded,
but said the act encourages federal and local prosecutors to use tougher
guidelines against those who cook or traffic methamphetamine. Funds could
be made available to law enforcement for tracking purposes, he said.

Members of local law enforcement are pleased with the advancement of a
national meth bill.

"When I started on the campaign, I quickly realized this was not a Vigo
County problem or a state of Indiana problem," said Vigo County Sheriff Jon
Marvel. "Every state does their own thing. We need federal legislation."

A nationwide law would discourage people from traveling over state lines to
buy ingredients to make methamphetamine.

"This is an evolving battle," Bayh said. "I wish there was a magic wand to
wave, but there is not. This is one step forward as we deal with this
terrible addiction."

Indiana addiction treatment centers and prisons have responded to the
increase of methamphetamine addicts.

This month, the nation's first prison-based methamphetamine treatment
program for female offenders opened at the Rockville Correctional Facility
in Parke County. Earlier this year, methamphetamine treatment programs
opened at Miami Correctional Facility and Wabash Valley Correctional Facility.

"This is a battle we have to fight and have to win," Bayh said. "We need to
keep people from becoming addicted in the first place."