Drug ban by Rotorua chemists may grow

By JO-MARIE BROWN


Health Minister Annette King has asked for an urgent report on whether moves by Rotorua GPs and pharmacists to ban all pseudoephedrine products from the city should be introduced nationwide.

Pseudoephedrine-based cold and flu pills are used to make pure methamphetamine, known as P.

People trying to gather the drug's raw ingredients often break into pharmacies or go from town to town buying as many pills as possible.

Many pharmacies across the country have already stopped stocking pseudoephedrine products as a result, but this is the first time a group of GPs has refused to prescribe them.

Dr Bev O'Keefe, chairwoman of the Rotorua General Practice Group, which represents most of the city's 60-odd GPs, said the decision was made following a police seminar this month on the effects P was having in the community.

"We were so horrified by the reality of the danger of methamphetamine that we felt we should try and take a proactive approach in so far as we could."

Bay of Plenty police have welcomed the announcement and Rotorua's 14 pharmacies describe it as "a bullet we had to bite".

The Ministry of Health's drug safety agency, Medsafe, has now been asked to prepare a report by mid-January on the advantages and drawbacks of banning pseudoephedrine products, and what alternative products are available.

Dr O'Keefe said she would lobby the Government to introduce legislation banning the prescription or sale of pseudoephedrine products throughout New Zealand.

"We believe there are other products that people can be offered which will attend to their minor ailments," she said.

Associate Health Minister Jim Anderton was cooler on the idea of a national ban, saying the Government had already classified pseudoephedrine and ephedrine as controlled drugs, tightened importation controls and stiffened penalties for the manufacture of P.

"We've got to be careful we don't overreact here," he said.

"P is a menace, no question, and the Government is taking it seriously but there are a number of medicines like pseudoephedrine which are very useful as remedies.

"If we start making them unsaleable, we're going to create a real rod for the back of ordinary people."

Mr Anderton said the ministerial committee on drug policy would assess Medsafe's report but the Government would try to avoid inconveniencing the law-abiding majority of the population.

As part of its inquiry, Medsafe has been asked to canvass national medical bodies for their opinions.

New Zealand Medical Association chairwoman Dr Tricia Briscoe said she supported the Rotorua initiative but there might be other options that were more suitable nationally.

Victor Klap, chief executive of the Independent Practitioners Association, said his organisation was consulting its 2000 or so GPs with a view to extending Rotorua's ban.

"Initial feedback supports the approach."

The ingredients

* Ingredients used in the manufacture of methamphetamine can come from some of the best cold and flu pills on the market.

* Drugs that could be affected include Actifed, Sudafed, Clarinase and Sinutab.

* Packet labels contain the best clue to whether a medicine contains a precursor used in the manufacture of illegal drugs.


Herald Feature: The P epidemic