LAS VEGAS -- Undercover surveillance video shows a man leaving a drugstore after buying a common cold medication. He dumps the box and will sell the pills to someone who makes meth. This is known as "smurfing", and it's one part of Nevada's huge meth epidemic.
Lawmakers are now considering making pseudoephedrine and other meth-making ingredients commonly found in over-the-counter cold medicine available only by prescription. Nevada pharmacies and law enforcement could ensure people aren't buying these drugs for the wrong reasons.
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"My bill is part of a national effort to put pseudoephedrine back on the controlled substance list where it was until 1974, I believe, and if you think back, we really didn't have a meth problem in this country until it was taken off the prescription drug list and given to the general community," said State Senator Sheila Leslie (Washoe-D), who sponsored the measure. "SB 203 is a controversial bill, although it shouldn't be."
Senator Leslie says it's a solution to a growing drug abuse problem in Nevada. She claims it is a proven option and cited Mississippi, which took pseudoephedrine off the market six months ago. She says the state has seen a 90 percent drop in crime related to meth.
If this bill becomes law, however, getting some cold medicine will become more difficult and more expensive. Opponents of the bill fear it will create longer wait-times at emergency rooms and doctors offices.
"This really will create an inconvenience that people won't be able to just go to a pharmacy, show their identification, and get their dosage of the drug," Nevada State Medical Association Executive Director Larry Matheis testified to lawmakers. "They will have to go to the doctor. They will have to get a prescription."
The Nevada State Medical Association neither opposes nor supports the bill. The Consumer Healthcare Products Association, however, is against it. The group represents medicine manufacturers.
"When you incorporate a prescription-only system, it's just going to further go to the black market as we see in Oregon," said CHPA lobbyist Chris Ferrari.
The industry favors combating meth abuse through an electronic logging system. The National Precursor Log Exchange or NPLEX tracks sales of over-the-counter cold and allergy medications in real time.
Supporters of the measure say e-tracking isn't enough. They made their case by showing lawmakers pictures of an abused two-year-old girl who was exposed to meth in her home; an addict who scratched her skin off after suffering vivid hallucinations; and rotting teeth of a meth user.
Oregon and Mississippi passed similar prescription-only laws. Thirteen other states are considering similar legislation as well.
The legislative committee did not reach a decision Monday, but will likely meet again in the coming weeks.
