New Meth Law May Hassle Cold Sufferers

Frank Gruich is one of several pharmacists along the Mississippi Gulf Coast that seems pleased with the new law governing pseudoephedrine. Now that the state requires a prescription, it'll cut down on all the paperwork he has to do now.

“Get their driver's license write down all information with it, you have to keep records of it, you have to go to a class once a year to dispense it,” says Gruich. Medical Arts Pharmacy is one of dozens of places across the state that sells common cold medicines containing the methamphetamine building block. Gruich says it'll be hard for addicts to fake a prescription.

“They'll go to a different store where the doctor's not that familiar and they don't know his signature that good in other words Biloxi, may go to Gulfport,” says Gruich. The downside to the new law is that people who use the drug for legitimate purposes will have a harder time getting it

“Now they're going to have to get their doctor to stop what he's doing, call the pharmacy, the pharmacist is going to have to fill it as a prescription,” says Gruich. Some customers say the new law is a new hurdle but might be worth it to combat drugs.

It should help a whole lot, but it all depends, if they want it they'll go where they have to go to get it,” says Albert Bell. He says he uses products with pseudoephedrine on a regular basis to fight allergies. The law goes into effect July first.