METH BILL PASSES HOUSE MEASURE DIFFERS FROM SENATE BILL

Beset by the devastating street drug methamphetamine, North Carolina is
poised to clamp down on a widely available ingredient in the addictive
stimulant, say state House members who approved the move Wednesday. It
comes at the cost of limiting everyone's ability to buy ordinary cold
medicines with a key meth component, the popular decongestant pseudoephedrine.

"Will this make it harder for the average citizen to obtain
pseudoephedrine? Yes, it will," said Rep. Mitch Gillespie, a Republican
business owner from meth lab hot spot McDowell County, along the Blue Ridge
mountains. "But we see in our paper every week the devastation this
terrible drug causes. It is a very tragic thing."

The bill passed the House 111-0. It goes to the Senate, which already has
approved a different version. The two chambers are expected to appoint a
joint committee to work out a compromise.

The chambers differ on which medications to regulate, and how.

The Senate proposes limiting to pharmacies the purchase of pills of
straight pseudoephedrine such as Sudafed -- the easiest kind to turn into
meth -- while leaving on store shelves combination cold drugs that include
the ingredient. The state Retail Merchants Association supports this
relatively narrow approach.

The House version also limits sales of solid pseudoephedrine pills but
extends the limits to include combination drug gel caps and liquid cold
medicines. However, it allows the sale of all forms of pseudoephedrine in
groceries and convenience stores.

"For our law-abiding citizens, I'm not sure that we want it to be just in
pharmacies," said Rep. Lorene Coates, a Salisbury Democrat. She said two
North Carolina counties have no pharmacies, and another has just one.

Rep. Leo Daughtry, a Smithfield Republican, and several other House members
said they prefer the Senate's version, which state Attorney General Roy
Cooper favors, too. But none voted against the House plan.

"It does not go far enough," said Daughtry, who favors restricting all
pseudoephedrine products to drugstore pharmacies.

Drug companies could get an exemption if they proved that their product
isn't likely to be used to make meth.

To buy cold medicines with pseudoephedrine, you'd have to show a photo
identification and be at least 18. You could buy two packs at a time, or
three in a month -- up to 300 pills.

You would also have to sign your name and address on a form showing what
and how much you bought. And you would be videotaped.

But as several lawmakers noted, state and local authorities would not
automatically monitor all sales. So meth-makers could buy small quantities
at many different stores. Or shop in unregulated South Carolina.

"This will cut down on the meth labs, but we could do better," said Rep.
Joe Kiser, a Republican and retired sheriff from Vale in Lincoln County,
northwest of Charlotte. "This bill does not do anything to reduce the usage
of methamphetamine in North Carolina."

Other lawmakers disagreed.

Rep. Jennifer Weiss, a Cary Democrat, called the measure "the most
comprehensive meth lab prevention bill in the nation."

Meth is an illegal, cheap, long-lasting and highly addictive stimulant that
can cause paranoia and violence in its users. Producing it from
pseudoephedrine (pronounced "soo-doe-eh-FED-rin") and other common
ingredients can generate dangerous fumes and cause deadly explosions.

So far this year, state and local law authorities have raided more than 200
meth labs.

Just last year, lawmakers stiffened penalties for people caught making or
selling meth.

Now they're trying to maker it harder to it produce, too.

"This makes us a leader in trying to cut off access to pseudoephedrine,"
said Rep. Phil Haire, a Sylva Democrat. "I really think that when the word
gets out about this bill, other states are going to copy what we're doing
in North Carolina."