The (fantastic) PBS documentary series Frontline did a show on meth a few of years ago, and it's definitely worth watching. Not only because of the almost unbelievable destructiveness and pervasiveness of the drug in some parts of the States, but also because the creators take a legal and structural approach to understanding the spread of meth, as well as the barriers to combatting it.
So they consider how, for example, laws restricting the importation of certain component chemicals that are only manufactured in India had measurable effects on addiction rates nationwide (less of the chemical imported meant less potent/addictive meth in the supply, and lower addition rates). In one of the more disturbing explorations, you also see how lobbyists from the pharma industry strove to block the passage of laws that would further restrict the dissemination of one of the key ingredient of meth (ephedrin or alternately, pseudoephedrine), which, importantly, are found in over-the-counter cold medicines.
So they consider how, for example, laws restricting the importation of certain component chemicals that are only manufactured in India had measurable effects on addiction rates nationwide (less of the chemical imported meant less potent/addictive meth in the supply, and lower addition rates). In one of the more disturbing explorations, you also see how lobbyists from the pharma industry strove to block the passage of laws that would further restrict the dissemination of one of the key ingredient of meth (ephedrin or alternately, pseudoephedrine), which, importantly, are found in over-the-counter cold medicines.
"The Meth Epidemic" tells the story of two potential solutions to the crisis and examines why neither was fully tried. In the mid-80s, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration first proposed controlling the retail sale of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine in cold medicines by having customers register at the counter and limiting how much they could buy. Pharmaceutical companies, however, resisted the DEA's plan. Allan Rexinger, a lobbyist for the pharmaceutical industry, felt the DEA was overreacting and unfairly punishing a legitimate business: "They have a different way of thinking. DEA agents carry guns; DEA agents are killed in the jungles of South America. But when you're working in Congress, you don't need to carry a gun. We felt like we were being treated just like a Colombian drug lord." Meanwhile, Gene Haislip, a former deputy administrator at the DEA, says: "They live in the business community, where the name of the game is to make money and sell product. They're highly skilled, very well organized and very well funded, and they can be quite formidable." Faced with a choice, the White House and Congress ultimately exempted cold medication from the regulatory proposals.Here is the full documentary.
Read more: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/meth/etc/synopsis.html#ixzz1dtmLzgmj
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