We will be unrelenting in the pursuit of safety for
children exposed to the extreme dangers of drug abuse environments.
We will facilitate collaborative efforts across all
government and private organizations to prevent drug abuse, provide response resources to children when
prevention fails, and aggressively break the cycles of drug abuse.
We will be steadfast in our dedication to the
mission and core values of DEC to ensure the concepts become
institutionalized.
3. Position papers and journal articles
a. Position
paper: NMPI Advisory Board
(PDF) (387kb)
"Law Enforcement does not want to arrest more
smurfers or find more methamphetamine labs.
Law Enforcement wants to eliminate smurfing
and prevent methamphetamine labs."
b.
Situation report: "Meth Production in the US Rebounds" NDIC (PDF) (1.0 mb)
c.
Article: "Pseudoephedrine: Stricter controls in the future?" Pharmacist Journal
d.
Article: "Back behind the counter for cold meds?" House Calls
e.
Op Ed: "The truth about pseudoephedrine and meth labs" Missourian f.
Editorial/Op
Ed/Article: Oregonian
(PDF) (400kb)
g. "Meth Epidemic Solutions"
i.
Law review article 82 N Dak L Rev 1195 (2006) (PDF) (454kb)
ii.
Article Sheriff Magazine (2009) (PDF) (1.3mb)
iii.
PowerPoint presentation
(2010)
(PDF) (1.7mb)
* Updated slide
information regarding method of meth manufacture
4. Comparing Oregon with industry promoted
electronic tracking systems
(Kentucky, Oklahoma, and
Arkansas currently have the gold standard of electronic
tracking)
(Kentucky uses the industry promoted MethCheck
system)
*
All
four states compared (PDF) (10kb)
5. Special series media reports
a.
Meth
series by the St Louis Post-Dispatch
(external link)
b.
Unnecessary
Epidemic series by The Oregonian
(external link)
c.
The Meth Epidemic
by FRONTLINE (PBS)
(external link)
d.
The
Oregon Front by Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB)
(external link)
6. Efforts and actions in various states and
nations
Kentucky efforts to return
pseudoephedrine to a prescription drug
Mexico initially followed Oregon's lead and
made pseudoephedrine a prescription drug. But then Mexico went one
step further and completely banned pseudoephedrine. Five other
Latin American nations
have followed Mexico's lead. This has led to a dramatic and positive
impact on the potency of meth on the streets of the United States.
However, due to the continuing failure of the United States to adequately control pseudoephedrine, the United
States has experienced a resurgence of both small user meths labs and
the large-scale production of California "super labs" run by drug trafficking
organizations. This resurgence is all fueled by
"smurfing," the direct results of the continuing failure of the United States to adequately control pseudoephedrine. For more information, see the
NDIC
Situation Report
(PDF) (561kb), the
Position
Paper of the NMPI Advisory Board
(PDF) (387kb), the "Unnecessary
Epidemic" series by The Oregonian
(external link),
"The Meth Epidemic" by FRONTLINE (PBS)
(external link),
"Meth Epidemic Solutions"
82 N Dak L Rev 1195 (PDF) (454kb), and updated
PowerPoint presentation
(PDF) (1.7mb).
New Zealand: Pseudoephedrine moved to
prescription only
New Zealand followed Oregon's lead and moved pseudoephedrine to a
prescription drug, and rejected the industry offer to pay for an
electronic monitoring system: a.
Media Statement
(PDF)
(38k)
b.
Action Plan Summary
(PDF)
(100k)
c.
News
Report
Pharmacy News
(external link)
d.
Editorial The Press
(external link)
Czech Republic: Pseudoephedrine moved to
prescription only
The Czech Republic moved pseudoephedrine to a prescription drug -
neighboring Poland has experienced smurfing by Czech meth cooks and
others:News
Report
UPI
(external link)
6. Personal note form the OADEC President
March 6, 2010
The other day I finished yet another
presentation about meth and pseudoephedrine control, when a student
asked me a simple question: What got me started - why so much passion
about this issue? It was not the first time I've been asked that
question. The answer is always the same, as it is for many of my
colleagues: Lots of reasons, some family and personal, but number one is drug endangered children.
You see, in 1976, we let a Genie out of a
bottle. We moved pseudoephedrine from a prescription drug to
over-the-counter. Ever since, we've been putting
band-aids on the situation, while meth labs blow up and catch
fire, lives and families are destroyed, neighborhoods devastated, our
environment poisoned and, most tragically, drug endangered children
suffer, or worse. Yes, I realize it is a sacrifice to return
pseudoephedrine to a prescription drug. But enough is enough.
We must tell the pharmaceutical industry no more band-aids, and put the Genie back in the bottle.
During my drive home from the presentation, I
thought of how best to explain the passion that many of us feel about this issue. Then I remembered a poem written
by a friend and colleague, Ron Mullins, a retired career law enforcement
officer and the first National DEC Training
Coordinator.
Ron read the poem at the
closing of the Inaugural National DEC Conference held in June of 2004.
The poem was written in memory of Bobby, a severely neglected young boy
who was found and removed from a meth lab home in New Mexico by Ron's
team. Despite valiant efforts by hospital staff, Bobby died from
severe neglect not long after being rescued. With Ron's
permission, I posted the poem on this website many years ago when Oregon
was still having around 500 meth lab incidents a year. I
removed it when Oregon got rid of most of its meth labs.
However, I decided to repost
it here, in order to help others understand why so many of us from around our nation are so passionate about this issue:
One-hundred years from now
it will not matter what your bank account was,
the sort of house you lived in, or the kind of car you drove.
But the world may be different because you were
important in the life of child.
– Anonymous
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