Pubdate: Tue, 30 Dec 2003
Source: Northern Territory News (Australia)
Copyright: 2003 Northern Territory News
Contact:  http://ntnews.news.com.au/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/283
Author: Paul Dyer
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

EXPECT QUESTIONS IF YOU WANT FLU TABLETS

Territory Pharmacies will crack down on the sale of cold and flu tablets in
a bid to curb the manufacture of illicit drugs.

The non-prescription medicines are to be moved from the shelves to behind
the counter.

Pharmacists can also question suspicious customers and limit the number of
packets they buy.

NT chief health officer Steven Skov said cold and flu medicines often
contained pseudoephedrine - a key component in the manufacture of
methamphetamine, commonly called speed.

He said the campaign aimed to prevent medecine bought from a pharmacy being
used to manufacture the popular party drug.

"All over Australia people have started to notice this business of people
going into chemist shops and buying repeated packets of common cold
preparations," he said.

"This is designed to make it more difficult for people to pick up three
packets of this stuff."

Mr Skov said pharmacists could refuse service.

But he said it was voluntary and there were no legal requirements for either
pharmacists or customers to comply.

"We are trying to get pharmacists to have a bit of a look at the person and
think about whether there might be something that is a little bit
suspicious," he said.

"We are just trying to get pharmacists to be more aware."

In WA, customers are required to show photographic identification to buy
pseudoephedrine.

Mr Skov said more stringent restrictions could be introduced in the
Territory.

The initiative is a collaboration of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia NT, NT
Police, Pharmacy Board of the NT and the Health and Community Services
Department.
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MAP posted-by: Josh