Under the law, about 100 over-the-counter medications containing pseudoephedrine can only be sold at a pharmacy. Furthermore, a person is limited to buying nine grams per month and must show photo identification and sign a log book.

Since the law took effect, meth lab seizures in Oklahoma have dropped from 103 a month in 2003 to 65 a month. U.S. Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.) said the Oklahoma law is considered a model for other states, with several other states planning to follow Oklahoma's lead.

"We're real excited about our results," Lonnie Wright, head of the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs, told the U.S. House of Representatives' Government Reform Subcommittee on Criminal Justice, Drug Policy and Human Resources , which has been holding hearings throughout the country to find ways to combat drugs.

But others, including a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) official, would prefer to wait a year to see if Oklahoma's statistics stabilize. "What I'd like to do is look at the statistics after a year to determine how much impact the Oklahoma law has had," said Joseph Rannazzisi, deputy chief of the DEA's office of enforcement operations.

A Kansas sheriff also told the panel that he has learned that some Oklahomans have been crossing the border to purchase the medicine since the law took effect in April.

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