• Home
  • News
    • Business
    • Crime / Courts
    • Health / Medicine
    • Legislature
    • Politics / Govt
  • Sports
    • The Bill Pollock Show
  • Contact Us
    • Reporters
  • Affiliates
    • Affiliate Support

Missourinet

Your source for Missouri News and Sports

You are here: Home / Legislature / Senate committee mulls over meth-fighting proposal

Senate committee mulls over meth-fighting proposal

February 16, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

The Senate Judiciary Committee is considering SB 160 – legislation that would require a doctor’s prescription to obtain cold medications containing pseudoephedrine – a main ingredient in the manufacture of methamphetamine.

The legislation is sponsored by Senator Jason Crowell (R-Cape Girardeau) who wants to make pseudoephedrine a controlled substance in an effort to cut down on meth-making, which is a huge problem in Crowell’s district in southeast Missouri.

Franklin County Deputy Sheriff Jason Grellner testified on behalf of the legislation, telling Senators methamphetamine cannot be made without pseudoephedrine, and saying the making of meth cannot be halted without controlling access to this ingredient. A suggestion that electronic monitoring would be sufficient to cut back on meth-naking is rejected by Grellner as inadequate.

“I’m here to tell you,” said Grellner, “That electronic monitoring does nothing more than identify more suspects for police to arrest.”

Opponents of the legislation say that while they want to cut down on methamphetamine manufacturing, this bill is not the answer. Mandy Hagan, Director of State Government Relations with the Consumer Healthcare Products Association, testified on behalf of the drug manufacturers.

“This is a proposal,” said Hagan, “That seeks to shift a new burden to the health care system to meet a law enforcement problem and we feel that electronic tracking is the more appropriate and suitable way to do that.”

As for suggestions the drug-makers oppose the legislation because it might cut into profits, Hagan rejects that conclusion: “It’s $9.4-million, approximately, in sales here (in Missouri). That represents about 1.8 percent of the U.S. pseudoephedrine sales market, over the counter, and that’s also about one quarter of one percent of the U.S. cough and cold market. So, it’s a very small market for us.”

The hearing ended with the committee taking no vote on the legislation.

Download/Listen: Senate hearing (57:00 MP3)

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Filed Under: Legislature Tagged With: Methamphetamiine

Subscribe to our daily newsletter

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.



Tweets by Missourinet

Sports

Ex-Chiefs coach charged with felony DWI

Former … [Read More...]

Mizzou gets opportunity of a lifetime in 2022 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

Out of … [Read More...]

Marching Mizzou is one of only three universities performing in 2022 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

The … [Read More...]

Missouri State Football earns share of Missouri Valley title–first since 1990

Missouri … [Read More...]

Arenado: “Just an amazing day, very thankful for it,” after his homer leads Cards to victory

Nolan … [Read More...]

More Sports

Tweets by missourisports

Archives

Opinion/Editorials

TwitterFacebook

Copyright © 2021 · Learfield News & Ag, LLC