THE REDHEADED PHARMACIST http://www.theredheadedpharmacist.com/ recently expressed concerns over the sales and diversion of PSE. A couple of years ago the Meth-check system was implemented in the greater Louisville KY area. After a year in place the number of the meth lab busts outside of the metro area was up 75%.. the number of lab busts INSIDE the metro area was UP ONLY 50%. Oklahoma and Oregon has taken the Rx only route and like squeezing a balloon … they have shifted the problem to surrounding states.
Indiana is implementing a state wide electronic PSE tracking program, this program was backed by neither the state Board of Pharmacy nor the Indiana Pharmacist Alliance, but was pushed through the legislature by various law enforcement depts. What are they using as the primary tracking ID?… a driver’s license. I hate to divulge this information…but driver’s licenses can and are routinely forged !
Those interested in amassing large quantities of PSE will know what they have to do to circumvent the system…. generate counterfeit driver’s license out the whazoo… pass them out to smurfs and the data they are collecting is virtually useless.
Like Oklahoma and Oregon they are just trying to push the problem outside of Indiana’s boundaries. If our country was really interested in attempting to put a lid on this problem… they would use a finger print reader and a national database.
To the best of my knowledge, the finger print on the right index finger cannot be easily changed. Why do we care about names, address and driver’s license number.. that may or may not be valid… Shouldn’t we be just concerned that the person’s right index finger has not attempted to purchase more PSE than allowed by law.
All we have to do is look at the successful on going diversion of Oxycodone/Oxycontin, Hydrocodone/APAP and other opiates plus 30+ states have controlled substance Prescription Monitor Programs (PMP) to see how moving PSE to Rx only could play out.
We have been fighting this war on drugs for nearly 100 yrs (Harrison Narcotic Act 1914) and the per-cent of the population that abuses some substances has remained fairly constant at ~ 1.5%. Over this century the only thing that has changes is what -at any given point in time – what is being abused… it moves from what is in vogue, most available or most affordable. Even a dog chasing its tail, eventually gets tired and figures out that it is useless. Is the average garden variety dog smarter than those fighting the war on drugs?
Filed under: Dumb politicians
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