Attorney General Calls for Tighter Restrictions on Sudafed Sales

August 26, 2005

Finally, after House Republicans tried for months to convince Democratic leaders in Springfield about the dreadful effects of methamphetamine, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced proposals today to tighten the restrictions on the sale of cold and allergy tablets that contain pseudoephedrine, one of the key ingredients in the manufacturing of meth.

The Attorney General has called for a new state law modeled after an Iowa and Oklahoma statute that requires products containing pseudoephedrine to be sold from behind pharmacy counters. In addition, customers will have to provide photo identification cards and sign a log book before they can purchase the decongestant pills. The I.D. cards and sign-in requirements have already been implemented in our surrounding states of Iowa, Missouri, Kentucky, and Indiana.

This legislation is extremely important in the fight against meth, especially in the rural areas that have been hit the hardest. I’m extremely pleased that the Attorney General has taken our concerns seriously and is joining downstate lawmakers in pursuing these new restrictions. I only wish this proposal could have been approved during the recently adjourned legislative session so its effects could have been felt much sooner.

Many of our downstate pharmacies have already voluntarily implemented this requirement. In reality, there needs to be statewide restrictions that prevent meth makers from obtaining this key ingredient.

I have already called the Attorney General and reiterated my strong belief that this will be one of the most effective laws we could pass in our fight against this highly addictive and devastating drug. We have a crisis in southern Illinois and I offered to help in any way possible.