Methamphetamine Abuse in Iowa, January 19, 2007

Abstract

Senate File 169—unanimously approved by the Legislature, signed into law by Governor Vilsack, and implemented May 21, 2005—classified the key ingredient used to make methamphetamine (meth) as a Schedule V Controlled Substance. Commonly referred to as Iowa’s pseudoephedrine (PSE) control or meth lab reduction law, this statute removed all cold and allergy products containing PSE from store shelves and placed the vast majority of them behind the pharmacy counter to be dispensed on a controlled non-prescription basis.SF 169 continues to work as intended by the Legislature to curb volatile meth labs in Iowa communities. The meth lab problem has greatly improved over the last year and a half, but it appears the rate of cur tailment has hit a plateau. For purposes of this report, and unless otherwise noted herein, the term meth lab refers to all types of meth lab incidents (e.g., active labs, chemical/glassware sites and dump sites).