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October 2, 2004
Cold sufferers will soon need identification to get relief



SALEM, Ore. - Catching a cold is about to get much more complicated.
Gov. Ted Kulongoski issued an order Friday that will require people buying
over-the-counter cold medicines in Oregon to show identification and leave
personal information at the register.

The new rules go into effect Oct. 13, and are designed to slow the state's
methamphetamine problem. Cold remedies such as Sudafed contain the main
ingredients in the manufacture of the powerfully addictive and cheap street
drug.

"Meth labs exist in Oregon homes, hotels, motels, apartments and even in
automobiles," Kulongoski said. "They're just as likely to be found in rural
communities as they are in big cities."

Kulongoski's Methamphetamine Task Force recommended the emergency rules, which
will be in place for 180 days as the governor works with the Legislature to make
them permanent.

Methamphetamine fuels 85 percent of the state's property and identity-theft
crimes, and is the leading reason Oregon children are removed from their homes
and placed in long-term foster care, the governor said.

Oregon treats more people for meth addiction per capita than any other state in
the country.

The new guidelines are modeled after an Oklahoma law credited for a steep drop
in illegal meth labs in that state. Purchasers must go to a store's pharmacy
counter or front register and show identification.

"Vendors will be required to keep a record of every purchase," Kulongoski said.
Officials will be on the watch for people making multiple purchases in a short
time."

Details of how names and other personal information will be gathered and used
won't be worked out until the Oregon Board of Pharmacy meets next week to adopt
the new rules.

(Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)