The New York Times reported Jan. 30 that many of the bills would reclassify drugs like Sudafed as controlled substances and restrict sales to pharmacies; buyers would have to talk to a pharmacist, show ID, and sign a logbook to get the medicine.

Drug companies and groups representing grocery and convenience stores are opposing the measures. Lobbying by these groups was successful in derailing anti-meth legislation in Iowa last year, for instance; the bill would have made drugs containing pseudoephedrine a Schedule IV controlled substance, similar to drugs containing codeine. Only Oklahoma currently has such a law on the books.

"We think there are better alternatives than what was done in Oklahoma, striking a better balance between consumers getting their medicines and keeping these products out of the hands of criminals," said Virginia Cox, a vice president of the Consumer Healthcare Products Association, which represents the over-the-counter drug industry.

In many U.S. communities, methamphetamine has become the top law-enforcement priority. "In Minnesota, meth is now breaking all the rules about how the drug spreads," said Deborah Durkin of the Minnesota Department of Health. "Meth is no longer a rural health problem here; it is a statewide public-health crisis, with 70 to 80 percent of the people in jail for meth-related crimes and large numbers of high-school kids becoming addicted."

States are concerned that if they don't impose restrictions on chemicals used to make meth, they could become a magnet for meth-makers from other states. "If we don't have a strong restriction on pseudoephedrine in Minnesota, I fear we'll become the dumping ground for every meth head in the United States, as cooks cross state borders to find the laxest regulations," said Julie Rosen, a Republican state senator.

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