CHPA Applauds Pennsylvania's Adoption of Real-Time, Stop-Sale Technology, An Effective Tool in the Fight Against Methamphetamine

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Consumer Healthcare Products Association

Jul 10, 2013, 09:00 ET

WASHINGTON, July 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) today applauded the Pennsylvania legislature and Governor Tom Corbett(R) for passage of House Bill 602, legislation requiring real-time, stop-sale technology to enable retailers to block illegal pseudoephedrine purchases right at the point of sale and to provide law enforcement with valuable potential criminal data up to the minute. Sponsored by state Representative Marguerite Quinn (R-Bucks), the bill lets the Keystone state join 28 other states in the fight against the illegal diversion of cold and allergy medicines containing pseudoephedrine to manufacture methamphetamine.

House Bill 602 brings Pennsylvania online with the majority of states via the National Precursor Log Exchange (NPLEx) system. NPLEx is a proven tool in the fight against methamphetamine production that has blocked tens of thousands of illegal sales across the country.

"While the vast majority of consumers purchase cold and allergy medicines legally, some criminals attempt to obtain illegal quantities of pseudoephedrine in order to manufacture methamphetamine," said Scott Melville, president and CEO, of the Consumer Healthcare Products Association. "NPLEx gives retailers the power to block these illegal purchases at the register before they happen, giving communities and Pennsylvania law enforcement a new and critical tool in stopping the illegal sale of these medicines to criminals."

NPLEx provides a secure, interconnected electronic logbook system that tracks and logs every pseudoephedrine sale in every store at the precise moment it is happening. When a purchase is made, the system advises retailers when to refuse a sale based on an individual's purchase record elsewhere in the state and is the only system that can block the illegal sale in real-time and across state lines.

"Governor Corbett, Representative Quinn, and the Pennsylvania legislature are to be commended for choosing a proven method for curbing methamphetamine production that targets criminals and protects responsible consumers' access to popular and reliable cold and allergy medicines," said Melville. "Passage of SB 602 is a significant victory for Pennsylvania citizens, employers, law enforcement officials and healthcare providers."

www.chpa.org

SOURCE Consumer Healthcare Products Association