Q: What is being done to combat the use of methamphetamine?
A: Iowa and other rural states have seen first-hand the power and prevalence of meth over the past few years. In Iowa, the number of meth labs has grown dramatically since the late 1990s, with a record 1,301 meth labs reported in 2004 by the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement. Oklahoma responded to the growing crisis last year by making it more difficult to buy over-the-counter cold medicines that contain pseudoephedrine, a primary ingredient in meth. This law has been hugely successful in Oklahoma, resulting in an 50 percent drop in meth lab seizures in the first six months after it passed. As Chairman of the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, I have sponsored a bipartisan bill with Sens. Jim Talent of Missouri and Dianne Feinstein of California that would restrict the sale of pseudoephedrine nationwide.
Q: How would this new law work?
A: The Combat Meth Act would make pseudoephedrine a Schedule V drug, meaning that while you don’t need a prescription, products containing it would have to be kept behind a pharmacy counter and could only be sold by a pharmacist or pharmacy technician. Exceptions would be made for products containing pseudoephedrine that can’t be used to make meth. The bill would also provide funding to help train local law enforcement and prosecutors so they can step up investigations and prosecutions of meth offenders. Training would also be made available to businesses that legally sell pseudoephedrine so they can better spot and stop would-be meth makers. And, since meth use can take such a heavy toll on children with addicted parents, the bill would provide funding for Drug Endangered Children rapid response teams.
Q: Isn’t Iowa considering passing a law like Oklahoma’s, why is nationwide legislation needed?
A: While several states are considering such legislation, there is no guarantee that there will be any kind of uniformity. If only Iowa passed a law limiting access to pseudoephedrine, a meth "cook" in Council Bluffs or Davenport could easily cross the border to purchase the ingredients they need in Nebraska or Illinois. Also, this legislation is necessarily broad so it’s effective nationwide. So, Iowa and other states can pass additional, more comprehensive legislation without fear of the state laws being undermined by large quantities of pseudoephedrine purchased legally in other states being brought to Iowa to manufacture meth.