10 Reasons for Rx Only Pseudoephedrine

Meth — an illegal drug that has caused untold heartbreak and anguish
in Indiana — cannot be made without ephedrine or pseudoephedrine,
common ingredients in popular over-the-counter cold medications.

To help prevent the manufacture of meth, Indiana has a new law
requiring that a sign be posted to alert customers that it is a criminal
offense to purchase products containing more than the specified amounts
of ephedrine or pseudoephedrine.

Effective July 1 a person may not purchase drugs containing more than
3.6 grams of ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, or both, on one day, or more
than 9 grams of ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, or both, in a 30-day
period. Depending on the amount of ephedrine or pseudo ephedrine
contained in the drug, purchasing more than one package of drugs
containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine on one day may be a crime.

The goal of the law is to prevent people from going from pharmacy to
pharmacy to purchase ephedrine or pseudoephedrine to make meth.

We believe it will do nothing to reduce meth’s tragic toll in our
communities.

The common sense approach is to make products containing ephedrine or
pseudoephedrine available by a doctor’s prescription only.

Here are 10 reasons — quoted directly from stories in our newspaper
as recently as June 5 — why lawmakers should stop listening to
lobbyists and have the courage to require prescriptions for the purchase
of products containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine. With more space we
could give you 100 reasons, all from KPC reports.

1. A canister of anyhydrous ammonia — a common ingredient in
methamphetamine production — exploded while police were questioning
suspects… (The News Sun, June 5)

2. An Allen County man (was high on meth) while caring for his infant
daughter. The baby girl was dead when police arrived.

3. A 23-year-old woman who died while being held at the St. Joseph
County Jail in South Bend had three plastic bags containing
methamphetamine inside her body.

4. Fire did extensive damage to a home … The blaze may be related to
the production of methamphetamine.

5. “We have one (pregnant inmate) who is charged with running a meth
lab… The only good thing about it is that as long as she is in here, the
baby will be off meth.”

6. In 2008, LaGrange County spent $7,609 on dental expenses alone for
methamphetamine users.

7. Police found an active one-pot meth lab in a book bag in a 19-month
old child’s bedroom in a rural Kendallville house. A man and woman
living in the house and allegedly involved in a verbal disagreement were
arrested on charges of manufacturing methamphetamine. The volatile
mixture brewing in the child’s bedroom could have exploded.

8. “Meth is so bad in Noble County that they have started pulling
occupancy permits on houses where meth was, in an attempt to run these
guys out of town,” Smith said. “Each house has to have a certified
test to find out the degree of contamination. That costs $1,000 to
$2,000. Then, no matter how much they find, a hazardous materials team
has to come and clean it up. That can cost anywhere from $8,000 to
$10,000 or even as much as $150,000 …”

9. “(W)ithout ephedrine, you can’t have meth. Right now we’re
swimming upstream on this. If it had to be (obtained with) a
prescription (as required in Oregon), it would be a savings … for
society as a whole.”

10. The question, “Is it good for the children?” needs to be part
of our decision making process.