In 2009 more than 700 meth labs were discovered in Kentucky.

Rachel Collier explains how you may soon need a prescription for one common ingredient.

Millions-of-dollars are spent each year cleaning up meth labs in Kentucky. It may be an inconvenience to consumers, but making those products illegal may be the right move in cracking down on meth production.

If put into law, you may need a prescription to buy any decongestant with pseudoephedrine in it--a main ingredient used to make meth.
This law has alsready been tried and tested in other states. "Oregon has had great success with this law, they pass this legislation in 2006, and they're down to 10 meth labs a year. We set a record last year of 718 I believe," said Tommy Loving, the director of the Warren County Drug Task Force.

But pharmacies are concerned, as it may drive up health costs.

"It would be an additional cost, not because of the retail price but because they'd have to go to the doctor and pay for an office visit for something that's been available for so long without a prescription," said Tim Scott, the pharmacy manager at Nation's Medicines in Bowling Green.

And in Oregon, they measured what it would cost consumers, and Loving says it's a worthy cause.

"In the first year, it was a little over $7,000 in prescription costs and physician visits, we've spent in Kentucky 1.6 million cleaning up meth labs last year."

A current system, called "meth check" tracks pseudoephedrine purchases, but it isn't stopping meth production.

With meth check you can buy about 2 boxes of Sudafed a month, but people have their way around that. They'll either send a friend in to buy it for them, or use alternate identifications, but hopefully with a prescription on top of meth check, that will solve the meth problem.

"Yes, we can track them with meth check," said Loving, "but we can't stop meth labs, with the prescription program, that was implemented in oregon, which we hope to be very similar in kentucky, and that has had a dramatic effect and has been in effect four years, and they continue to drop each year."

Loving hopes they'll be able to pass the bill this year, and wants to see the law include both a prescription and tracking method.