CHPA Applauds House Passage of Drug Offender Block List

WASHINGTON, April 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) today applauded Tennessee state Representative Tony Shipley (R-Kingsport) after his legislation—House Bill 1257—passed out of the Tennessee House of Representatives. The bill, which passed the Senate last week and the House just last night, would implement a real-time, drug offender block list in Tennessee. The measure now heads to Governor Haslam for his signature.

Representative Shipley's real-time, drug-offender block list would work in tandem with the state's pseudoephedrine electronic tracking system to bar all drug felons from purchasing pseudoephedrine (PSE)-based medicines without a doctor's prescription for ten years. While Tennessee already uses a similar meth offender registry, Shipley's legislation would implement much-needed enhancements to the system to ensure that more criminals are blocked.

"Representative Shipley's bill would immediately provide Tennessee law enforcement officials and retailers with a tool that is proven to stop meth crime before it happens," said Carlos Gutierrez, senior director and head of state government affairs for CHPA. "Oklahoma and Alabama recently adopted similar legislation and both states have seen significant progress against meth lab incidents. In Oklahoma, they've experienced a decline of more than 50 percent, and it is our hope that Tennessee will soon experience similar declines."

"CHPA continues to believe that Tennessee can make significant progress in the war against meth by passing solutions that target criminals, not law-abiding citizens. Representative Shipley's legislation is an important example of that standard."

The Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) is the 133-year-old trade association representing the leading manufacturers and marketers of over-the-counter (OTC) medicines and dietary supplements. Every dollar spent by consumers on OTC medicines saves the U.S. healthcare system $6-$7, contributing a total of $102 billion in savings each year. CHPA is committed to promoting the increasingly vital role of over-the-counter medicines and dietary supplements in America's healthcare system through science, education, and advocacy.

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SOURCE Consumer Healthcare Products Association