Sudafed and other cold medicines containing the methamphetamine precursor pseudoephedrine, already stored behind drugstore counters, will be available by prescription only on July 1. (Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli)

Local pharmacies report some customers are stockpiling cold pills before they become prescription-only on July 1 as part of a statewide effort to curb methamphetamine manufacturing and abuse.

Users will find plenty of replacement drugs on store shelves, pharmacists say, but they may not be as effective as those containing pseudoephedrine, a precursor to meth.

"We had two patients in today, one wanting to get what he could and the other, who heard about (the new law) from me, bought a few extra," said Isaac Wine of Christian's Pharmacy in Medford.

Alex Frum of Gold Hill Pharmacy said some customers have been stocking up on Sudafed, Claritin-D and other over-the-counter cold pills containing pseudoephedrine, which methamphetamine cooks extract to make the illegal drug. Laws in 2004 put the drugs in secure locations at retail sites and required purchasers to show identification.

Drug companies are filling the empty space on store shelves with pills containing phenylephrine, a decongestant used in years before pseudoephedrine drugs became popular. Though some medical professionals say phenylephrine works but is not as effective, customers are buying it.

Wine said he's helping customers with verbal reminders that they can always go to their doctor and get prescriptions for the decongestants with pseudoephedrine.

Although it's illegal to import controlled or banned drugs, a "certain element" know they can order them on the Internet from Mexico or other countries, said Frum. But they risk seizure and possible arrest if their mail is inspected, he said.

Mark Ottis of Ashland Drug said he's allowed stocks of pseudoephedrine-based decongestants to dwindle and, even though a customer is allowed to buy 120 pills a day under current law, no one is trying.

Pharmacists are welcoming the new state law because it will relieve them of the hassle of having to ask for picture identification and keep a log of pseudoephedrine buyers' names, driver's license numbers and date of birth, dosage and size of sale, said pharmacist Ross Pelton of Rite-Aid in Ashland.

"I have mixed feelings on the new law because a majority of illegal drug use doesn't come from a few customers buying it off the shelf, but rather from big-time cartels who get it from India, Mexico and other countries," Pelton said.

Chris Mason, director of Addictions Recovery Center in Medford, said the new laws resulted in "meth labs going down considerably, because pseudoephedrine is the single ingredient that's absolutely necessary to the production of meth. This (prescription-only law) takes it to another level."

Law enforcement agencies report that meth lab seizures dropped by 59 percent statewide in one year and local seizures dropped from 17 to four.

Phenylephrine, the active ingredient in the new cold medications, may cause dizziness and drowsiness and should not be taken for longer than a week, according to medical Web sites. Since it's a vasoconstrictor, which shrinks blood vessels, it's also not recommended for people with high blood pressure. People also shouldn't take it if they have heart disease, thyroid problems, diabetes, glaucoma, enlarged prostate or liver or kidney disease, the Web sites said.

John Darling is a freelance writer living in Ashland. E-mail him at jdarling@jeffnet.org.