New cold medicine law goes into effect in NC [Register your Sudafed!]

News 14 Carolina ^ | 1/15/2006 1:38 PM | Staff

[TaxRelief]

WAKE FOREST, N.C. --North Carolina started enforcing its new law intended to stop the spread of methamphetamine labs on Sunday.

Since 1999 the number of meth labs in the state has skyrocketed. Then the State Bureau of Investigation busted nine labs; in 2005 they discovered 328 of them.

As of Jan. 15 you must be at least 18, show photo ID and sign a log if you want to by over-the-counter cold medicines such as Sudafed and Tylenol Cold. Both medicines contain either pseudoephedrine or ephedrine, which are key ingredients used to make meth.

(snip)

Under the new law you can only buy two packages of cold medicine containing pseudoephedrine or ephedrine at a time, and only three packages in a 30-day period.

[Tax-chick]

I haven't looked for anything different lately. My husband gets some kind of prescription antihistimines, but I don't bother. Maybe I'll have to, though.

[MeanWestTexan]

Ah, you don't mind it so much until you wait in line at the pharmacy, then get told you need the little piece of paper with the "SKU" on it from the shelf so the Dim-voter can scan it, and no, he can't just scan the box with the same number on it because he was not trained to do it that way.

[WhyisaTexasgirlinPA]

;^)

[Ohioan from Florida]

Vick's Vapo-rub...gives me the willies just to think about that stuff! The plus for sudafed is that you don't smell so bad when you walk out the door!

[WhyisaTexasgirlinPA]

I'll check at Sams the next time I'm there to see if they are doing the same thing.

[sweetliberty]

"Register your Sudafed. Register your beer kegs. How 'bout those illegal aliens?"

Can't register illegals. That would be violating their rights. < /sarcasm >

[Tax-chick]

LOL - that is a problem, yes.

[vrwc0915]

"its a good law they passed it here in alabama and the labs literally disappeared now if we can just stop the mexicans from bringing in from mexico"

There it is right there folks! If there is a demand there will be a supply. I am no friend of druggies. A good portion of my peace officer days were spent dealing with meth heads. It pissies me off to no end that I can't buy cold meds in any quantity those of us that don't live in the city and have to drive an hour or two don't like having to make a whole bunch of trips.

[Blessed]

>Is the distributor going to know if it's going on? Business is good, a lot of people have colds and the flu, move along.,

Distributors are required to have a license to sell these products as of 4 years ago.The Dea checks records for large sales to one customer.

[sweetliberty]

"It's all the crap they pull to feed their habit before it kills them that's annoying."

And unfortunately these people tend to reproduce like bunnies. An element in most meth lab busts is children. While an argument could be made that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, an argument could also be made that the tree didn't start out poisoned. These kids don't have a choice. They should at least have a chance.

See my tagline.

[webstersII]

"Remember the article that recently came out claiming that cold remedies don't work to heal colds"

That's correct, they don't heal anything. They only help control symptoms so you can still live your life.

[NCjim]

The druggies have taken control of a good product, and have abused it to the point where law abiding people are being punished.

Remember the little spoon-shaped coffee stirrers at McDonalds that really worked? They were apparaently used by druggies so now we have the flat ones that work half as well...

[MeanWestTexan]

That's what the CPS is for.

(Not that they go after cases like this where child-removing is really needed. They like to bother people who spank their kids or somesuch in public.)

And yeah, I'm all for forced sterilization along with free drugs for them.

[Issaquahking]

I think the guy from OK got it right...

Beer For My Horses (featuring Willie Nelson) Lyrics


Well a man come on the 6 o’clock news
Said somebody’s been shot, somebody’s been abused
Somebody blew up a building
Somebody stole a car
Somebody got away
Somebody didn’t get too far yeah
They didn’t get too far

Grandpappy told my pappy, back in my day, son
A man had to answer for the wicked that he done
Take all the rope in Texas
Find a tall oak tree, round up all of them bad boys
Hang them high in the street for all the people to see that

Justice is the one thing you should always find
You got to saddle up your boys
You got to draw a hard line
When the gun smoke settles we’ll sing a victory tune
We’ll all meet back at the local saloon
We’ll raise up our glasses against evil forces
Singing whiskey for my men, beer for my horses

We got too many gangsters doing dirty deeds
We’ve got too much corruption, too much crime in the streets
It’s time the long arm of the law put a few more in the ground
Send ’em all to their maker and he’ll settle ’em down
You can bet he’ll set ’em down ’cause

Justice is the one thing you should always find
You got to saddle up your boys
You got to draw a hard line
When the gun smoke settles we’ll sing a victory tune
We’ll all meet back at the local saloon
We’ll raise up our glasses against evil forces
Singing whiskey for my men, beer for my horses

Justice is the one thing you should always find
You got to saddle up your boys
You got to draw a hard line
When the gun smoke settles we’ll sing a victory tune
We’ll all meet back at the local saloon
We’ll raise up our glasses against evil forces
Singing whiskey for my men, beer for my horses


More truth in it than meets the eye

[Wallace T.]

The restrictions on pseudoephedrine or ephedrine are on the state level and thus would not be an interstate commerce matter. We are therefore dealing with a philosophical issue, as to whether a state or local government may place restrictions on market transactions in the name of fighting a dangerous drug. There is also the practical issue of the effectiveness of these restrictions. If market restrictions put the small drug dealer operating outside of an international syndicate out of business, it may invite the larger, Mafia-style operation that has the ability to produce large quantities, set up networks of sellers, and pay off police, prosecutors, and politicians.

I am no fan of drug legalization, but restrictions on the sale of pseudoephedrine or ephedrine may eliminate Bubba, and lay the groundwork for 21st Century goombahs.

[Dyslexic Mom]

In Indiana we have to jump through the rings, too. I take the chance to stock up when I can because when the family is hit with a monster cold or flu we drink Nyquil like water.

That said, one morning in Wal-Mart I stood behind a young Mom at the window -her obviously ill two (or even younger)year old in the cart- as the pharmacy cashier was explaining the differences between medications she was thinking of purchasing. From the conversation, I got that the Doctor had KINDLY told her to treat the child with over-the-counter meds. Once the poor thing had decided on what to get, after who knows how long of a horrible day of dragging this poor baby from point A to B to C... the cashier makes a terrible discovery... Mom's not eligible to buy ANYTHING! The cashier was embarrassed and mortified. Mom was frustrated -the med. she got last week was for the OTHER (assuming older -as there are age appropriate meds for kids of certain ages) child who'd given what she/he had to little sister. Now Mom was forced to leave EMPTY HANDED!

I wanted to give up my med. card and sign for hers but, NO... that's illegal...

I understand these laws, but, please... all Moms... STOCK UP AHEAD OF TIME and ask your doctors to PLEASE give you a real prescription!

[Gabz]

I agree that would be a royal pain.

So far, so good for me, neither Maryland or Virginia have done this (yet) and so as long as I don't wind up with a cold or allergy outbreak while visiting family/friends in Delaware I'm (for the moment) OK.

[Ohioan from Florida]

So that's what happened to them!! I wondered why they disappeared!!

[WhyisaTexasgirlinPA]

I like the "He needed killin'" defense.

[calex59]

Now, instead of just the drugs and meth labs, they will now have a thriving underground market for cold remedies! These ingredients will be sold and obtained even with these idiot laws in place.

I believe the chemicals required for meth production come across our borders daily, not to mention meth itself.