ALTERNATIVE TO SUDAFED MAY NOT CURB 'METH' PRODUCTION

The release by a major drug company of an alternative to Sudafed may not
necessarily curb meth production, but it could be a step in the right
direction. In a move to offer an alternative to the decongestant Sudafed,
which contains pseudoephedrine, an ingredient necessary in the production
of methamphetamine, Phizer Inc. has announced that it would release Sudafed
PE in the United States this month.

The new alternative, just as effective in relieving congestion as its
predecessor according to area pharmacists, contains the active ingredient
phenylephrine, which cannot be converted into meth.

Sudafed PE has been available in Phizer products in Europe since 2003, and
state officials are questioning why it took so long to offer the new remedy
in Tennessee, a state plagued by meth abuse.

Local pharmacies have already begun placing Sudafed and other medications
containing pseudoephedrine, or ephedrine, behind store counters, and have
changed their practices to closely scrutinize purchases of these products.

Tennessee leads the nation in meth lab seizures and accounts for
three-quarters of all busts made in the south. According to figures
released recently by the South/East Tennessee Methamphetamine Task Force,
Coffee County ranked seventh among Tennessee's 95 counties in the number of
meth lab seizures from Jan. 1 2004 until October of the same year. Bradley
County topped that list.

Richard Randolph, a pharmacist at Marcrom's Pharmacy, said Phizer is
utilizing the Sudafed name with Sudafed PE although the alternative does
not contain the active ingredient found in its counterpart.

"I bet you money, it will be a big mover," he said.

The release of Sudafed PE may be a step in the right direction, but
Randolph is not convinced that offering an alternative will "throw a cog in
the wheel" of meth production.

"I'm surprised it will be over the counter. I don't know of any other
product over the counter containing this ingredient (phenylephrine)."

Randolph said the active ingredients in Sudafed and Sudafed PE are the only
two effective oral decongestants on the market. Pseudoephedrine, which can
be converted into meth, is available in a myriad of other remedies (more
than 4,000 products), such as Schering Plough's Claritin-D and Phizer's
Actifed.

He does believe that Sudafed will be moved behind store counters when the
alternative is released. The clerks at Marcrom's know to watch for patterns
of excessive purchases of all medications kept behind the counter.

But Randolph is concerned any benefit from the Sudafed alternative would be
short-lived, even if all the other drug companies follow suit.

"The people are smart. They will find a way to get around it," he said.

The pharmacy has already moved iodine behind the counter, the only other
ingredient in the store that is commonly used in meth production.

Billy Cook, the director of the Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, based
out of the 14th Judicial District Attorney's office in Manchester, believes
the only way to stop meth would be to outlaw production of ephedrine or
pseudoephedrine.

About six years ago, he said phenylpropanolamine, the active ingredient in
Dexatrim, also a decongestant, was pulled from the market due to its
serious side effects.

"Ephedrine is such a cheap, readily-sold product. It is marketed all across
the country and there are so many different ways to purchase it.

"I'll just have to sit back and watch and see what effect it has," Cook said.

He said Tennessee is considering the passage of legislation that would
force all ephedrine-containing products off the shelves and behind the
counters in pharmacies.

"I'm more hopeful for that. I think it would help a great deal.

"The profit these drug companies make by selling it is so huge. And it does
have a legitimate medical purpose.

"If all the other companies follow suit, they'll (meth cookers) be ordering
it off the Internet from Canada or Mexico," Cook said.