ANTI-METH PLAN AIMS AT ALLERGY MEDICATION

TOPEKA - Law enforcement officials are considering asking for a restriction
on the purchase of certain allergy medications in an effort to reduce the
number of methamphetamine labs in the state.

Since Oklahoma passed such a law, officials have noticed an increase in the
number of customers from that state coming across the border to buy the
medications in Kansas, which they then take back to Oklahoma to make meth,
said Kyle Smith, a spokesman for the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.

"We're hearing stories about buses pulling up with people piling out to buy
two and three packages at a time and heading home," Smith said.

The number of meth labs operating in Oklahoma has dropped dramatically
since a law restricting the sale of Sudafed tablets passed unanimously
during the Legislature's 2004 session. Smith said Kansas could see a 50
percent reduction in the number of meth labs if Kansas lawmakers passed
such restrictions.

The proposed Kansas law would limit over-the-counter sale of tablets
containing psuedoephedrine, the main ingredient in Sudafed and similar
allergy medications, and would require that the medication be purchased
directly from a pharmacist. Individuals would still be able to purchase the
drug off the shelf in the form of gel caps, which contain psuedoephedrine
but are more difficult to refine into meth.

Members of a meth task force formed by Gov. Kathleen Sebelius and Attorney
General Phill Kline discussed the proposal at a recent meeting and are
continuing talks this week at a regional summit in St. Louis.

In Oklahoma, those wanting to purchase products containing psuedoephedrine
must do so directly from a pharmacist. Customers must show photo
identification and sign for the product. Individuals are limited to 9 grams
of medication - or about six 24-tablet packages - every 30 days.

Scott Rowland, chief counsel for the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and
Dangerous Drugs, said law enforcement statewide has reported a 60 percent
drop in the number of labs. In Tulsa, the number of labs seized dropped
from 20 in November 2003 to three in November 2004.

Similar laws in surrounding states and full compliance by pharmacists will
further reduce the making of meth in Oklahoma, Rowland said.

"We know the Oklahoma law is working, and not just from the fact they
report cutting their lab seizures in half," said Larry Welch, KBI director.

Kansas reported 529 meth lab seizures and 438 arrests through Nov. 25. Last
year there were 640 arrests and 649 lab seizures. Smith said the numbers
have mushroomed since the 1990s with the development of quicker means to
produce the drug.