Sale of 23,600 boxes of cold medicine blocked last year

Missouri officials hail success of tracking program

In this Sept. 2, 2010 file photo a Franklin County police officer counts pills containing pseudoephedrine during a raid of a suspected meth house in Gerald, Mo.
In this Sept. 2, 2010 file photo a Franklin County police officer counts pills containing pseudoephedrine during a raid of a suspected meth house in Gerald, Mo.

Missouri pharmacists, law enforcement and legislators have come together to track the sale of an over-the-counter drug that is used to make methamphetamine. But they have been blocked from doing the same for opiates and other prescription drugs like Oxycontin.

The sales of more than 23,600 boxes of pseudoephedrine, commonly used to treat nasal and sinus congestion, have been blocked in Missouri this year thanks to combined efforts of pharmacists and law enforcement officers who use a real-time, stop-sale tracking system known as the National Precursor Log Exchange (NPLEx).

The system has been in use in Missouri since it started in 2011 and is used by 29 other states. Since 2011, 4.7 million sales have been blocked across the country, according to the NPLEx website, nplexservice.com.

Pseudoephedrine is commonly used to produce methamphetamine, said Sgt. Mike Sneller of the Cole County Sheriff's Department. Sneller coordinates the MUSTANG Drug Task Force, which serves Boone, Cole and Callaway counties as well as the city of Boonville.

NPLEx's blocked sales in 2014 may have stopped more than 59,000 grams of methamphetamine from being produced, according to estimations from NPLEx data released Nov. 17.

"I am thrilled that the NPLEx system continues to perform in Missouri," said state Rep. Kurt Bahr, R-O'Fallon, in a news release. "Law enforcement and pharmacists are working together to combat a terrible drug. By stopping suspicious sales of pseudoephedrine, we are taking real steps to stop meth production and distribution, while at the same time making sure law-abiding Missourians still have access to the medicines they need."

The program tracks sales of pseudoephedrine and collects information in a database so pharmacists can keep people from buying more than an allotted amount and law enforcement officials can review the data to help further investigations.

"It allows us to go on site and keep track of certain individuals that we are looking at because we have reasonable suspicion they are making meth," Sneller said. "It has only helped; it has not hurt anything. It has helped law enforcement keep track of the sale of pseudoephedrine; and, with the law that tracks the amount of pseudoephedrine sold, I believe it will reduce the amount of (meth) labs in Missouri."

Sneller said since law enforcement officers started using NPLEx he has noticed a decline in the number of meth labs in the areas he serves. The system also allows officers to track "smurfs," people recruited by meth manufacturers to purchase pseudoephedrine. Police now can use data from previous investigations to link known associates to sales of pseudoephedrine, then monitor the suspects more closely, thanks to NPLEx, Sneller said.

"I think it is a wonderful thing that all systems are connected," said Amanda Rudder, pharmacist at Whaley's Pharmacy in Jefferson City. "It (blocking a sale) does not happen that often here. On average, it happens maybe once or twice a month. But before coming to Whaley's, I worked at Walgreens, and it was on an everyday basis."

Another method of keeping pseudoephedrine from meth makers would be to classify it as a prescription drug, but people could still "doctor shop," or provide false information to pharmacists and physicians to acquire the drug. However, this would unfairly penalize people who need pseudoephedrine and cannot afford to see a physician, Rudder said.

NPLEx requires that purchasers show valid identification to purchase the drug, and state law requires them to sign an electronic form as well, Rudder said. This has caused some minor problems, such as people being suspicious of signing for an over-the-counter drug and some forgetting to bring their identification or get it renewed, she explained.

"I certainly do think it is helpful for products like pseudoephedrine that are sold over the counter and used to make illicit substances such as methamphetamine, but I wish we had a thing like that for all medications," Rudder said.

Sneller confirmed that the police do not have a system that tracks the purchase of prescription drugs. Missouri is the only state in the country that does not have a prescription drug-monitoring program in place. State Rep. Kevin Engler, R-Farmington, has tried multiple times to pass legislation to provide a prescription drug-tracking program, but it has not succeeded.

"Unfortunately, I've carried (this bill) for five years," Engler said. "It's embarrassing that Missouri is the only state ... Our doctors are working, trying to treat people; they don't have time to come up here (the Capitol) every year and ask why we aren't getting this done."

When Engler first tried to pass the bill, he was a senator and the bill never came to a vote because of opposition led by state Sen. Bob Schaaf, R-St. Joseph, who is a doctor. Schaaf said his concern was that prescription drug databases contain sensitive, personal information that government officials don't need to know.

"All they have to do is punch in your name and address, and they can find out every controlled substance you've been prescribed," Schaaf previously said.

A committee called Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) NOW is launching a campaign for the 2015 legislative session to put a prescription drug-monitoring program in place. They will host a news conference on the subject at 2 p.m. Monday in hearing room 7 at the Capitol.