Content about Methamphetamine

NEW YORK There is a big danger here, and it’s a danger that has less to do with the neighborhood meth addict in search of pseudoephedrine, and more to do with appropriate access to medicines and who gets to be the gatekeeper to that access. Because not only will a prescription-only PSE restrict consumer access to a legitimate nonprescription cough-cold ingredient, but if successfully mandated by the local government, it also has the potential to limit legitimate access to just about any cost-saving OTC medicine and for just about any reason.

NEW YORK The objective here is closing down clandestine methamphetamine labs. The question is: Who is going to bear the cost? And the answer, ultimately, is the consumer.

It seems that one of the primary reasons behind legislation like this, which is also under consideration by the California state legislature as well as several local municipalities throughout Missouri, is cost shifting.

NEW YORK Attempting to curtail methamphetamine production by more or less eliminating the precursor ingredient pseudoephedrine from the market is kind of like throwing out the baby with the bathwater. PSE is a legitimate self-care option that is, according to general consensus, more effective than the other cough-cold decongestant on the market — phenylephrine. And restricting access to that self-care option hurts legitimate consumers more than it does meth cooks. But more on that in a second.