The president of the West Virginia
Retailers Association said there’s no need to make pseudoephedrine a
prescription-only medication. Bridget Lambert stressed if you look at the
latest data it proves NPLEx is working.
In an effort to reduce the amount
of meth labs popping up all over the state the legislature in 2012 passed a
bill that reduced the amount of pseudoephedrine individuals could buy and put
the medication behind the counter. NPLEx tracks the person and amount of
pseudoephedrine that are purchased. Once someone has reached their limit, they
are red-flagged.
Lambert said since NPLEx was put
into place Jan. 1, 2013, meth lab incidents have decreased by 27 percent and
pseudoephedrine sales have declined by 35 percent. In Kanawha County
“It demonstrates the policies that
were put into place in the past two to three years as well as law enforcement
and retail vigilance we’re seeing from our members is having a positive impact
on addressing the meth problem in West Virginia,” according to Lambert.
She said those calling for a bill
to make pseudoephedrine prescription only really need to look at those new
numbers.
“We felt if (NPLEx) was given time
to prove itself it would,” Lambert said. “It appears that time has arrived.”
She said the goal has always been
to keep the drug out of the hands of addicts who turn it from a medication into
an illegal substance. She stands firm that honest, law-abiding West Virginians shouldn’t be punished for the crimes of a
few.
“Let’s not penalize hard working, West Virginia
However, there is one piece of
legislation that Lambert would like to see passed when it comes to meth.
“One control that we have been
asking for and continue to ask for from the retail industry is a meth offender
registry,” she explained. “Let’s address the meth problem with the meth
criminal.”
Lambert believes the longer NPLEx
is in place the fewer meth labs law enforcement will have to bust.
