Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Zephrex-D, the decongestant touted as a tool in the fight against meth labs, is now available at Walgreens, Walmart and CVS.
Zephrex D is now available in several national and regional retailers. As previously reported by Patch, the decongestant was availble at Walgreens last week. It is now available at Walmart and CVS across the St. Louis area. (For instant news updates follow Patch on Facebook and Twitter.) Zephrex-D is manufactured by Maryland Heights based Highland Pharmaceuticals. Westport Pharmaceuticals is a subsidiary of Highland. Paul Hemings, vice president and general manager with Westport Pharmaceuticals, tells Patch "tamper-resistant" Zephrex-D is only being sold in the St. Louis market, including St. Louis, St. Charles and Jefferson counties. As previously reported by Patch, Zephrex-D is being touted as a decongestant that cannot be converted …
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Zephrex-D, a new decongestant that drug agents say cannot be converted into methamphetamine, is set to hit St. Louis pharmacies this month. A prescription will not be required to purchase the drug in some areas.
Zephrex-D, a new decongestant that its manufacturer and St. Louis area drug agents say cannot be converted into methamphetamine, is set to hit St. Louis pharmacies this month. (For instant news updates follow Patch on Facebook and Twitter.) As previously reported by Patch, Zephrex D is expected to be available in St. Louis area pharmacies in November. Since its maker and drug agents say it cannot be converted into meth, it will also be sold without a prescription in some counties that have recently passed ordinances requiring a prescription to purchasepseudoephedrine products like Claritin-D and Allegra-D. Zephrex-D is manufactured by Maryland Heights based Highland Pharmaceuticals. Westport Pharmaceuticals is a subsidiary of Highland. …
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
The new decongestant Zephrex-D should be in St. Louis pharmacies this year. It's gaining support from drug task force agents because it can't be converted into meth. Here's how it works.
A new decongestant set to hit St. Louis area pharmacies in November is gaining support from drug agents in the fight against methamphetamine. (Read Previous Story: Zephrex-D: Meth-Busting Decongestant in St. Louis Pharmacies This Year) As previously reportedly by Patch, authorities say meth makers purchase popular allergy medications and extract the pseudoephedrine from them. "You can take a pseudoephedrine pill and the first thing you do is try and extract as much pure pseudoephedrine as possible and step two, you convert that pure pseudoephedrine into methamphetamine," Paul Hemings, with Highland Pharmaceuticals, tells Patch. In November, Highland Pharmaceuticials is unveiling a new decongestant, Zephrex-D, that Hemings said prevents …
Monday, September 24, 2012
Highland Pharmaceuticals plans to offer Zephrex-D in St. Louis pharmacies by November. The new decongestant reportedly cannot be converted into meth and might not require a prescription.
In an effort to fight methamphetamine, Missouri cities and counties, although not St. Louis County, are passing ordinances requiring prescriptions to purchase pseudoephedrine products like Claritin-D and Allegra-D. (Sign up here for the FREE Patch Newsletter, including Breaking News Alerts.) Pseudoephedrine is the key meth making ingredient needed to make the drug. It is extracted from popular allergy medications and converted into meth. Now, a new decongestant set for sale in St. Louis area pharmacies in November is touted as meth-resistant and gaining support by area drug agents. Zephrex-D, manufactured by Maryland Heights based Highland Pharmaceuticals, is a new pseudoephedrine product that police and the drug's maker hope will stop …
Thursday, April 26, 2012
If you ask the president of the Missouri Narcotics Association, who has been tracking meth down for more than 15 years, the answer is "Yes."
Franklin County Sheriff's Department Sergeant Jason Grellner makes finding meth his mission. He's the President of the Missouri Narcotics Association and the Unit Commander of the Franklin County Narcotics Unit which works in conjunction with the St. Louis County Drug Task Force. Grellner said meth started showing up in the St. Louis area in 1996. That is 20 years after the FDA changed the drug pseudoephedrine, a decongestant that is also the key ingredient for making meth, from requiring a prescription to an over-the-counter drug. The FDA made that change in 1976. "Missouri has been the leader in meth labs for over a decade. 2010 was the only year we weren't ranked number one, Tennessee took us over and we were back as number one in 2011…
Mike Budd
3:09 pm on Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Hello Gabrielle, To be honest these legal aspects are a bit confusing: depending on your town, you will buy ephedrine behind the counter or only with a prescription. For me it would now make sense to pass prescription laws at state or county level only, with an exemption for meth-deterring products such as Zephrex-D. We would avoid a lot of admin work and meth-proof ephedrine could be bought … more ›