Health News
Lawmakers said they would compromise on the idea of making pseudoephedrine available only by prescription, and they have. Senate Bill 3 would only require a prescription for medicines containing the drug after a patient has bought 3.6 grams of it per month and a maximum of 15 grams per year. Gelcaps and liquid forms of the drug would still be excluded. (Associated Press photo by John Flavell of recovering addict Melanda Adams and Senate Majority Floor Leader Robert Stivers, who introduced the bill)
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In the face of a strong lobbying effort by makers of over-the-counter cold medicines, a state Senate committee narrowly approved a bill today that would require a prescription for most products containing pseudoephedrine, a key ingredient used to make...
Health News
Meds-for-meth compromise bill introduced
Lawmakers said they would compromise on the idea of making pseudoephedrine available only by prescription, and they have. Senate Bill 3 would only require a prescription for medicines containing the drug after a patient has bought 3.6 grams of it per month and a maximum of 15 grams per year. Gelcaps and liquid forms of the drug would still be excluded. (Associated Press photo by John Flavell of recovering addict Melanda Adams and Senate Majority Floor Leader Robert Stivers, who introduced the bill)Now, people are limited to buying 9 grams per month and 120 grams per year of cold and allergy medicines containing pseudoephedrine, which is the key ingredient to make meth. The bill would also prevent anyone who has been convicted of a meth-related crime from buying the drug without a prescription for five years.
Last week, Sen. Robert Stivers, R-Manchester, withdrew a bill that would have required a prescription for any purchases of the drug. Stivers introduced this new bill yesterday and told The Courier-Journal it gives people who use the medicines "adequate opportunity without incurring medical expenses or the cost of a prescription to access these on a monthly basis and an annual basis."
Opponents to the bill still feel it is too restrictive, with the Consumer Healthcare Products Association continuing "to oppose burdensome restrictions to over-the-counter cold and allergy medicines that thousands of law-abiding Kentuckians rely upon for relief," Elizabeth Funderburk, senior director of communications for the group that represents makers of over-the-counter medicine and dietary supplements, told the Louisville newspaper.
Opponent Pat Davis, mother of six and wife of 4th District U.S. Rep. Geoff Davis, railed against the new proposal. "I'm not sure why they're calling it a compromise bill because I'm not sure who they compromised with," she said. She pointed out if four members of her family were to get sick with a cold, and took Sudafed to treat it for seven days, that would amount to 13.44 grams of the medicine ? nearly the annual limit. "Really what this bill is is the same bill," she said. "They're throwing out a few crumbs, which they're calling 15 grams."
Jackie Steele, commonwealth's attorney for Laurel and Knox counties, told the paper that the lower limits could lead to a reduction in meth labs, but not for long. "I hope this cures it," he said of the meth-lab problem. "I don't think it will."
In London, whose Walgreens has the highest sales of pseudoephedrine in the state, Police Chief Stewart Walker agreed with Steele. "The bad guy is always going to figure a way around this," he said. "(With the compromise) you probably leave the door partly open and there's so much more room for added work."
The Senate Judiciary Committee could consider the new bill Thursday, and the entire Senate could vote on it this week, Stivers told the Lexington Herald-Leader. (Read more) For The Courier-Journal's story, by Jessie Halladay and Tom Loftus, click here.
- 'meds For Meth' Bill Is About To Become Law Despite Heavy Lobbying Campaign By Pharmaceutical Companies
The bill to limit purchases of a popular cold medicine used to make methamphetamine passed the General Assembly today and Gov. Steve Beshear said he would sign it. The Senate voted 29-8 to approve changes the House made in Senate Bill 3, sponsored by...
- House Panel Oks "meds For Meth" Bill; Chair Predicts Passage
The bill to limit purchases of the cold medicine used to make methamphetamine cleared another legislative hurdle Monday, and the chairman of the committee that approved it predicted that it will become law despite a heavy lobbying effort by over-the-counter...
- Meds-for-meth Bill Stalls In State House Committee
A measure aimed at curbing methamphetamine production failed to come to vote in the House Judiciary Committee Tuesday. Rep. John Tilley, a Hopkinsville Democrat who chairs the committee, said he hopes Senate Bill 3 will be voted on later this week. The...
- Anti-meth Bill Passes Senate; Limits Monthly Pseudoephedrine Purchases To 7.2 Grams A Month And 24 Grams A Year
In an effort to curb methamphetamine production, the Senate passed a bill Friday that will limit the amount of pseudoephedrine that can be bought monthly and annually. Senate Bill 3, approved 25-11, will allow consumers to buy 7.2 grams of medicine containing...
- Senate Committee Narrowly Passes Meds-for-meth Bill As Advocates Start Their Own Radio Advertising Campaign
In the face of a strong lobbying effort by makers of over-the-counter cold medicines, a state Senate committee narrowly approved a bill today that would require a prescription for most products containing pseudoephedrine, a key ingredient used to make...