Pharmacist will have to screen buyers as Oklahoma House passes meth drug bill
BY WAYNE GREENE World Senior Writer & BARBARA HOBEROCK World Capitol Bureau
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
3/14/12 at 9:50 AM
Read the Tulsa World’s continuing coverage of the meth epidemic.
OKLAHOMA CITY - The state House rejected a proposal Tuesday night to require pharmacists to determine that everyone they allow to buy pseudoephedrine has a legitimate medical need for the allergy medicine - but then turned around and approved essentially the same requirement as an amendment to another bill, which passed.
Pseudoephedrine is a popular cold and allergy medicine, but it also is a key ingredient in Oklahoma meth labs.
Amid nearly three hours of debate and a blizzard of parliamentary procedures and votes on two competing pseudoephedrine bills, the House ended up passing Rep. David Derby's proposal to link Oklahoma to a multistate pseudoephedrine tracking system after Derby promised to eventually undo his own amendment that encompassed the heart of the pharmacist proposal.
While much of the evening's debate centered on the pharmacist proposals, the House also approved amendments that would lower the maximum amount of pseudoephedrine that Oklahomans can purchase and allow pharmacists to charge people who attempt to buy the drug but are rejected because they are over the state limit.
The first proposal considered by the House was House Bill 2808 by Rep. Sean Roberts, R-Hominy. That bill would require pharmacists to determine a legitimate medical need for anyone buying pseudoephedrine.
Roberts and his allies argued that his bill would reduce the number of meth labs in the state and save lives.
"I'll take (saving) lives over runny noses and watery eyes any day," said Rep. Ben Sherrer, D-Chouteau.
But opponents of the measure argued that it was an unwarranted government intrusion.
"How far down this road of government intrusion are you willing to go?" asked Rep. Fred Jordan, R-Jenks. "How much of your liberty are you willing to give up in hope that somebody doesn't have a meth lab?"
Rep. Mark McCullough, R-Sapulpa, said there are times government must intrude in people's lives to protect the public.
"When a problem gets big enough, you have to use a big stick," McCullough said.
But Rep. Don Armes, R-Faxon, author of the state's first pseudoephedrine limitation law in 2004, said he doubts that the Roberts bill would be effective.
"This cow will not stay milked," Armes said.
The bill failed 44-48.
The House then took up Derby's bill to allow Oklahoma to track pseudoephedrine sales in 19 states and make sure Oklahomans don't avoid purchasing limits by going to those other states.
Although Derby had led opposition to Roberts' bill, he offered an amendment that essentially duplicated it, requiring pharmacists to make a determination of medical need before selling the drug.
The amendment passed. Derby later conceded to lawmakers that he thought he had changed the amendment's language to make the medical determination optional for pharmacists.
Derby realized the mistake after it was too late to change it Tuesday, but he promised House members that the issue would be altered in the Senate.
The House passed an amendment to Derby's bill, offered by Rep. Doug Cox, R-Grove, that would limit pseudoephedrine purchasers to 3.4 grams per day and 7.2 grams per month. The current limit is 9 grams per month. A 10-tablet package of 24-hour Sudafed contains a total of 2.4 grams of the drug.
The House also passed an amendment by Rep. Jadine Nollan, R-Sand Springs, that would allow pharmacists to charge a service charge of up to the package price of pseudoephedrine prior to the sale. If the purchaser is OK'd for the drug purchase by the electronic tracking system, all of the service charge would be applied to the drug's cost, but the pharmacist would keep the service charge if the tracking system showed that the buyer wasn't eligible to make the purchase.
Nollan said some pharmacies are already using service charges as way of discouraging illegal pseudoephedrine buyers from even attempting to make the purchases.
Derby's bill goes to the state Senate for consideration.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the state Capitol, the Senate voted 45-1 to pass a measure to link Oklahoma to the multistate tracking system and limit pseudoephedrine sales to 3.6 grams per day, 7.2 grams per month and 60 grams a year.
Senate Bill 1634, by Sen. Rick Brinkley, R-Owasso, passed 45-1 and heads to the House for consideration.
Original Print Headline: House passes meth drug bill
Wayne Greene 918-581-8308
wayne.greene@tulsaworld.com
Associated Images:
Pseudoephedrine is a popular cold and allergy medicine, but it also is a key ingredient in Oklahoma meth labs.
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