Despite a lot of work on enforcement and education, we are still reading about methamphetamine busts way too much.
You would think with all the information about meth -- the way it destroys people and families -- that not many people would want to get involved in it.
You'd think, but that's not the way it is. That's why an announcement out of Jefferson City this week caught my eye. I have always believed in stopping the meth problem at its root, so to speak.
One of those roots is pseudoephedrine, one of those wonder drugs that, if used properly, can unstop your nose. Used improperly, it can be made into meth, one of the worst drugs to ever appear on this planet.
Gov. Jay Nixon Tuesday unveiled a new high-tech database to stop methamphetamine dealers. How? By cutting off the source, or at least cutting it way, way down.
Appriss Inc., was selected to build the state's first database that tracks purchases of pseudoephedrine products. The database will allow pharmacists and law enforcement to determine at the point of sale whether the buyer has gone from store to store buying large amounts of pseudoephedrine as a way to circumvent legal limits, according to a release from the governor's office.
The system will automatically deny the sale to a buyer who has exceeded the daily maximum purchase of 3.6 grams, or 120 standard tablets.
Appriss operates similar systems linking some 18,000 pharmacies in states surrounding Missouri. Add our state to the mix, and you have a database that's going to make it really hard for meth cooks to get pseudoephedrine, a key ingredient in meth production.
Senate Bill 724, signed into law in 2008, required the creation of an electronic system in which pseudoephedrine purchases could be tracked. It is expected that the Appriss system will be up and running within three months.
There's more good news. Pharmaceutical companies are picking up the cost of the database,so taxpayers and the state budget get a break.
Pseudoephedrine products can be sold only at a pharmacy and must be kept behind a counter. Now, law enforcement must review registers to find the names of people making multiple purchases. That will change.
The system is also able to spot fake identification cards, flag multiple purchasers living at the same address and track other suspicious patterns.
Under the contract, Appriss also will provide free training to pharmacy staffs on how to use the system. The company also will provide free training to law enforcement personnel on how to spot suspicious purchases.
Now that's a good victory in the war on meth.
Donald Dodd is president and publisher of Salem Publishing Company. He can be reached at newsdodd@earthlink.net or 729-4126.
