Nationwide System Cuts Down On Oklahoma Meth Labs
7.8.15 – Dylan Stephens, KSWO
Meth has been a drug that has plagued Oklahoma for years, but a survey released Wednesday shows the number of meth labs has dropped by 79 percent since 2012.
Legislators and law enforcement agencies are praising a system called NPLEx, which stops the mass sale in pharmacies of pseudoephedrine, a common meth ingredient. Just this year alone, NPLEx has prevented the sale of nearly 24,000 boxes of Sudafed.
If you want to buy Sudafed, you’ve probably been asked for your ID. It’s not to see how old you are, but to put you into a database that all pharmacies are connected to that will instantly show you’ve purchased it. It keeps people from not only going down the street to buy it, but also across state lines.
Gary Woodson at Anderson Pharmacy says NPLEx has been a system the pharmacy has used for about eight years.
“I know we don’t sell as near as much pseudoephedrine as we used to,” Woodson said.
Woodson believes it’s just a way they can do their part.
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