Reviews of records about purchases of pseudoephedrine-based drugs at Iowa pharmacies led to five arrest warrants being issued against people suspected of buying the medications as raw materials for making methamphetamine.

The Quad City Times reported April 11 that police say that the logs required under the 2005 Iowa Pseudoephedrine Control Law have helped curb the proliferation of clandestine meth labs around the state. In addition to requiring buyers of pseudoephedrine-based products to sign a log book, the law compels purchasers to show a photo ID. Only individuals ages 18 and older can buy the drugs, and purchases are limited to 7,500 grams over a 30-day period.

"It has been very successful," said Gary Kendell, director of the Governor's Office of Drug Control Policy, of the law. "It has caused a 70 percent reduction in meth labs over a two-year period."

A recent review of two months worth of logs from 20 pharmacies in Scott County yielded five cases where buyers exceeded the purchase limit, according to the county sheriff's office. Multiple purchases by the same individual over the course of many months, or out-of-town addresses on the log, also raise red flags for investigators.

However, it takes police months to review each two months worth of logs. "We try to be as proactive as we can, but it can be time consuming," said Chris Endress of the Quad City Metropolitan Enforcement Group.

As a result, some law-enforcement agencies are calling for the creation of a centralized statewide database of buyers. Pharmacies, however, say that the costs of such a database could raise prices on pseudoephedrine-based drugs by 10-20 cents per package.