Legislature may revisit OTC pill law

LIHU‘E — Gov. Neil Abercrombie this summer vetoed legislation that would have put more teeth in a previous law limiting access to certain over-the-counter medicines, but the bill may be reintroduced next year.

State Rep. Jimmy Tokioka, D-15th District, said the state Legislature in 2008 passed Act 184, related to pseudoephedrine sales, which required pharmacies and retailers to maintain an electronic log of sales of the substance and related products, and transmit the information to the Department of Public Safety’s Narcotics Division on a monthly basis.

“The bill took effect on July 1, 2008, provided that a pharmacy or retailer had until Jan. 1, 2010, to establish their electronic log using software that would be provided by the narcotics enforcement division of the Department of Public Safety required under the act,” he said.

During the 2011 Legislative session, SB 40 was introduced. It took the previously established tracking log from Act 184 a step further by changing the monthly reporting duties to a Point of Sale electronic database tracking, according to Tokioka.

“The idea was that further limiting the access by placing a new control would help limit the use of pseudoephedrine in the manufacturing and trafficking of methamphetamine,” he said.

The current maximum purchase amounts are a minor deterrent in comparison to the potential of a real time “stop sale alert” or the flag raised when customer or seller goes to purchase or sell the product to the consumer if maximum capacity has already been reached, said Tokioka, who voted for the measure.

On May 3 it passed final reading and was enrolled to Gov. Neil Abercrombie. But on July 12 Abercrombie vetoed the bill, because it combined pseudoephedrine with the subject matter ephedrine, Tokioka said.

“I believe we will revisit this legislation again this upcoming session and work out the kinks so that we can implement a P.O.S. electronic log system,” he said.