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> You just have to go up to the counter and ask. You have to show ID, just like you do for liquor (and, because purchases of psuedoephedrine are rate-limited, t

> You just have to go up to the counter and ask. You have to show ID, just like you do for liquor (and, because purchases of psuedoephedrine are rate-limited, they're going to log your purchase) Up to the counter and ask...when the counter is open that is increasingly a problem as pharmacies close and hours are limited (the two nearest me close at 6pm, right at the end of working hours). Show ID...that the pharmacist will accept (not all of us drive or have a driver license). Rate-limited...at a quantity too low for a household that has a sinus infection running around. So, no, it's not already easy. Canadians can go into a Costco and buy as much as they like and apparently it's not an entire nation of Walter Whites up there so what makes us so special?

nkozyra 3y ago
> Rate-limited...at a quantity too low for a household that has a sinus infection running around. I don't think so. I actually buy this stuff for allergies because it's the only thing that works for me and doesn't disrupt my sleep one way or another. I get 60 pills which are 2x what's in cold medication. I get that it's annoying but for an illness it's more than enough for a large family.
- heavyset_go 3y ago
  If you have two people who take it everyday for allergies, you've already hit your limit with 60 pills.
  - wutwutwat 3y ago
    And yet still had enough for both of you, and that's if you both don't purchase the meds, and go to a 2nd store, or go to the same store the following day or week. 9 GRAMS every 30 days. The 20cnt box of Sudafed is 120mg pills, so 2400mg total, or 2.4 grams per box, and that's not all phseduo, which I think the 9 grams is only concerned with. So you'd have to look at how much of that 120mg is the limited material if that's the case. Assuming they mean the entire pill. That means every 30 days, each adult in your family can buy 3 boxes each (3.75 technically but I rounded down) from the same store. So 60 bills, to cover 30 days, per adult. How is that not enough for your daily single dose? 3 boxes just you can buy covers 2 adults taking it daily. This is where all the complaints that it's too restrictive fall apart. When you do the math, there is room to stockpile and STILL take it daily... The rate limiting is just that, limiting the rate, making it more effort to obtain mass amounts so it's more time consuming to gather up for abuse. The goal was never to stop meth production with the limit, it was to seriously slow it down, which it has, which equates to less of it overall on the streets. And the limits as we just calculated are more than a single person should need if taking the pill daily, which is the max allowed dose. So, it's not an issue, and we just proved it with math, now excuse me I have to go beat my own ass for saying we just proved something with math.
    - heavyset_go 3y ago
      > This is where all the complaints that it's too restrictive fall apart. When you do the math, there is room to stockpile and STILL take it daily... And yet innocent people still get arrested and have their lives upended and/or ruined because they accidentally violated pseudoephedrine regulations. When that's happening, it's because the regulations are too restrictive.
      - nkozyra 3y ago
        > And yet innocent people still get arrested and have their lives upended and/or ruined because they accidentally violated pseudoephedrine regulations. I'm curious to know if you have any examples of this because I can't find one.
        heavyset_go 3y ago
        This was posted on this submission: https://reason.com/2009/09/30/put-down-the-cold-pills-grandm/ https://reason.com/2009/09/30/put-down-the-cold-pills-grandm... More: https://reason.com/2009/09/28/hoosier-grandmother-arrested-f/ https://reason.com/2009/09/28/hoosier-grandmother-arrested-f...
        akerl_ 3y ago
        Those two links are the same one person.
        heavyset_go 3y ago
        I know. The second link contains more info than the first.
        jrockway 3y ago
        It seems that the major pharmacy chains keep records and will refuse to sell it to you before you reach the limit that would trigger a misdemeanor. But, if a law is never enforced, it should be deleted. Otherwise, one day you decide you don't like someone's political views, and suddenly they are the first case of purchasing 9.1g of Sudafed in a single 30 day period. Dead code is just waiting to be a security incident.
  - nkozyra 3y ago
    At a decongestant dosage this will last two people two months. And of course if the second person is 18+ they can also buy that. I'm not advocating that the limits are good, just that a single person is very unlikely to hit them for allergies, periodic illness or asthma (it's also available as a prescription for allergies)
    - jrockway 3y ago
      The legal limit is 9g per 30 days, and the recommended dose is 7.2g per 30 days (=240mg/day). So if both parents take the maximum dose, there is none for the kids. (3 people would need 21.6g; both parents together could buy 18g.) Personally, I don't take it at night, so I wouldn't run into this problem, but the existence of 240mg "24 hour extended release" tablets leads me to believe that someone else must. (I'm a little jealous that they can sleep with it in their system. It would be nice!)
      - nkozyra 3y ago
        > the recommended dose is 7.2g per 30 days (=240mg/day) 30-60mg, and this is not recommended for more than 7 days for sinuses It's actually a fairly significant dose already.
wutwutwat 3y ago
> Up to the counter and ask...when the counter is open that is increasingly a problem as pharmacies close and hours are limited (the two nearest me close at 6pm, right at the end of working hours). Probably covered by the FMLA or any boss who isn't an asshole, or since it's OTC, have someone grab it for you, or get it on your lunch, or task rabbit it. > Show ID...that the pharmacist will accept (not all of us drive or have a driver license). If you don't have an acceptable state ID the pharmacy not giving you cold meds is the least of your hurdles. Go get an ID, you need it for anything offical that requires proof of ID. This isn't the medication rate limits fault. > Rate-limited...at a quantity too low for a household that has a sinus infection running around. My state allows 9 grams every 30 days, which should be plenty. BUT, that rate limiting is not checked/enforced statewide, meaning you can go to one store and get some and down the road to the next store and get some, and so can the other adults in your household. The limits are plenty for intended use. Only people wanting meth manufacture amounts complain that 9 grams in 30 days per store is too low. > So, no, it's not already easy. Canadians can go into a Costco and buy as much as they like and apparently it's not an entire nation of Walter Whites up there so what makes us so special? It's pretty easy. When you have an ID like every adult should have, and a normal size household, stepping out at lunch or running to a late night rx place and asking for a box or two of sudafed is literally as easy as buying booze or smokes, show your id, pay the person, leave. And btw if you checkout bluelight or /r/meth, our neighbors up north are having a field day cooking meth a lot of which is coming across the border into the US. No criminal enterprise is going to have unrestricted access to the key ingredient for a super addictive drug and pass on utilizing it.
- heavyset_go 3y ago
  There are regulations that exist specifically to stop people from buying pseudoephedrine for someone else, anti-"smurfing" laws. Some places make you sign a government waiver that confirms you're only buying Sudafed for yourself, a family member, or someone in your household. There are limits on how much a single person and household can buy or have, as well. It's not something you can use Task Rabbit for, and anyone that does pick it up for someone else because an app told them to is potentially opening themselves up to criminal liability.
jrockway 3y ago
The only reason I have a state ID is for buying Sudafed. I was tired of "my system won't scan your passport". I disagree with the person that replied to you, you really don't need a state ID for anything.
- wutwutwat 3y ago
  Well if you have a passport, which is federal ID, of course you don't need a state ID. But there are plenty of people who have criminal records that would prevent them from getting a passport, as well as plenty of people who just don't want the couple week process and complexity of getting a passport, or don't want to carry a bulky book when all they need is 1 page from it, and who have no intention of leaving the country. State IDs are the default for a ton of people who can't or don't drive.
  - bhaney 3y ago
    > or don't want to carry a bulky book when all they need is 1 page from it, and who have no intention of leaving the country US passports are available in card form for exactly these people. They work the same as a book-style passport within the US, but can't be consistently used for international travel. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/need-passport/card.html https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/need-pa...
    - wutwutwat 3y ago
      TIL, thanks!
bmurphy1976 3y ago
> Rate-limited...at a quantity too low for a household that has a sinus infection running around. I know all of this is annoying (and I agree) but many people don't think to stock up when they are healthy. You should! You can avoid a lot of problems with a little preparation ahead of time.
- alexjplant 3y ago
  For the first time in my adult life I ran dry of Fisherman's Friend and DXM while dealing with a flu just this last week. Amazingly Amazon Prime will overnight you DXM if you enter your driver's license info at check-out.
mcpackieh 3y ago
> Show ID... [...] (not all of us drive or have a driver license). Your objection is irrelevant. States give photo IDs which are just like drivers licenses except they don't say "drivers license", you don't have to pass any driving tests, and you can't drive with them. Otherwise they look and work the same and every employee trained to look at drivers licenses will accept them without hesitation.

nkozyra 3y ago

> Rate-limited...at a quantity too low for a household that has a sinus infection running around. I don't think so. I actually buy this stuff for allergies because it's the only thing that works for me and doesn't disrupt my sleep one way or another. I get 60 pills which are 2x what's in cold medication. I get that it's annoying but for an illness it's more than enough for a large family.

heavyset_go 3y ago
If you have two people who take it everyday for allergies, you've already hit your limit with 60 pills.
- wutwutwat 3y ago
  And yet still had enough for both of you, and that's if you both don't purchase the meds, and go to a 2nd store, or go to the same store the following day or week. 9 GRAMS every 30 days. The 20cnt box of Sudafed is 120mg pills, so 2400mg total, or 2.4 grams per box, and that's not all phseduo, which I think the 9 grams is only concerned with. So you'd have to look at how much of that 120mg is the limited material if that's the case. Assuming they mean the entire pill. That means every 30 days, each adult in your family can buy 3 boxes each (3.75 technically but I rounded down) from the same store. So 60 bills, to cover 30 days, per adult. How is that not enough for your daily single dose? 3 boxes just you can buy covers 2 adults taking it daily. This is where all the complaints that it's too restrictive fall apart. When you do the math, there is room to stockpile and STILL take it daily... The rate limiting is just that, limiting the rate, making it more effort to obtain mass amounts so it's more time consuming to gather up for abuse. The goal was never to stop meth production with the limit, it was to seriously slow it down, which it has, which equates to less of it overall on the streets. And the limits as we just calculated are more than a single person should need if taking the pill daily, which is the max allowed dose. So, it's not an issue, and we just proved it with math, now excuse me I have to go beat my own ass for saying we just proved something with math.
  - heavyset_go 3y ago
    > This is where all the complaints that it's too restrictive fall apart. When you do the math, there is room to stockpile and STILL take it daily... And yet innocent people still get arrested and have their lives upended and/or ruined because they accidentally violated pseudoephedrine regulations. When that's happening, it's because the regulations are too restrictive.
    - nkozyra 3y ago
      > And yet innocent people still get arrested and have their lives upended and/or ruined because they accidentally violated pseudoephedrine regulations. I'm curious to know if you have any examples of this because I can't find one.
      - heavyset_go 3y ago
        This was posted on this submission: https://reason.com/2009/09/30/put-down-the-cold-pills-grandm/ https://reason.com/2009/09/30/put-down-the-cold-pills-grandm... More: https://reason.com/2009/09/28/hoosier-grandmother-arrested-f/ https://reason.com/2009/09/28/hoosier-grandmother-arrested-f...
        akerl_ 3y ago
        Those two links are the same one person.
        heavyset_go 3y ago
        I know. The second link contains more info than the first.
      - jrockway 3y ago
        It seems that the major pharmacy chains keep records and will refuse to sell it to you before you reach the limit that would trigger a misdemeanor. But, if a law is never enforced, it should be deleted. Otherwise, one day you decide you don't like someone's political views, and suddenly they are the first case of purchasing 9.1g of Sudafed in a single 30 day period. Dead code is just waiting to be a security incident.
- nkozyra 3y ago
  At a decongestant dosage this will last two people two months. And of course if the second person is 18+ they can also buy that. I'm not advocating that the limits are good, just that a single person is very unlikely to hit them for allergies, periodic illness or asthma (it's also available as a prescription for allergies)
  - jrockway 3y ago
    The legal limit is 9g per 30 days, and the recommended dose is 7.2g per 30 days (=240mg/day). So if both parents take the maximum dose, there is none for the kids. (3 people would need 21.6g; both parents together could buy 18g.) Personally, I don't take it at night, so I wouldn't run into this problem, but the existence of 240mg "24 hour extended release" tablets leads me to believe that someone else must. (I'm a little jealous that they can sleep with it in their system. It would be nice!)
    - nkozyra 3y ago
      > the recommended dose is 7.2g per 30 days (=240mg/day) 30-60mg, and this is not recommended for more than 7 days for sinuses It's actually a fairly significant dose already.

wutwutwat 3y ago

> Up to the counter and ask...when the counter is open that is increasingly a problem as pharmacies close and hours are limited (the two nearest me close at 6pm, right at the end of working hours). Probably covered by the FMLA or any boss who isn't an asshole, or since it's OTC, have someone grab it for you, or get it on your lunch, or task rabbit it. > Show ID...that the pharmacist will accept (not all of us drive or have a driver license). If you don't have an acceptable state ID the pharmacy not giving you cold meds is the least of your hurdles. Go get an ID, you need it for anything offical that requires proof of ID. This isn't the medication rate limits fault. > Rate-limited...at a quantity too low for a household that has a sinus infection running around. My state allows 9 grams every 30 days, which should be plenty. BUT, that rate limiting is not checked/enforced statewide, meaning you can go to one store and get some and down the road to the next store and get some, and so can the other adults in your household. The limits are plenty for intended use. Only people wanting meth manufacture amounts complain that 9 grams in 30 days per store is too low. > So, no, it's not already easy. Canadians can go into a Costco and buy as much as they like and apparently it's not an entire nation of Walter Whites up there so what makes us so special? It's pretty easy. When you have an ID like every adult should have, and a normal size household, stepping out at lunch or running to a late night rx place and asking for a box or two of sudafed is literally as easy as buying booze or smokes, show your id, pay the person, leave. And btw if you checkout bluelight or /r/meth, our neighbors up north are having a field day cooking meth a lot of which is coming across the border into the US. No criminal enterprise is going to have unrestricted access to the key ingredient for a super addictive drug and pass on utilizing it.

heavyset_go 3y ago
There are regulations that exist specifically to stop people from buying pseudoephedrine for someone else, anti-"smurfing" laws. Some places make you sign a government waiver that confirms you're only buying Sudafed for yourself, a family member, or someone in your household. There are limits on how much a single person and household can buy or have, as well. It's not something you can use Task Rabbit for, and anyone that does pick it up for someone else because an app told them to is potentially opening themselves up to criminal liability.

jrockway 3y ago

The only reason I have a state ID is for buying Sudafed. I was tired of "my system won't scan your passport". I disagree with the person that replied to you, you really don't need a state ID for anything.

wutwutwat 3y ago
Well if you have a passport, which is federal ID, of course you don't need a state ID. But there are plenty of people who have criminal records that would prevent them from getting a passport, as well as plenty of people who just don't want the couple week process and complexity of getting a passport, or don't want to carry a bulky book when all they need is 1 page from it, and who have no intention of leaving the country. State IDs are the default for a ton of people who can't or don't drive.
- bhaney 3y ago
  > or don't want to carry a bulky book when all they need is 1 page from it, and who have no intention of leaving the country US passports are available in card form for exactly these people. They work the same as a book-style passport within the US, but can't be consistently used for international travel. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/need-passport/card.html https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/need-pa...
  - wutwutwat 3y ago
    TIL, thanks!

bmurphy1976 3y ago

> Rate-limited...at a quantity too low for a household that has a sinus infection running around. I know all of this is annoying (and I agree) but many people don't think to stock up when they are healthy. You should! You can avoid a lot of problems with a little preparation ahead of time.

alexjplant 3y ago
For the first time in my adult life I ran dry of Fisherman's Friend and DXM while dealing with a flu just this last week. Amazingly Amazon Prime will overnight you DXM if you enter your driver's license info at check-out.

mcpackieh 3y ago

> Show ID... [...] (not all of us drive or have a driver license). Your objection is irrelevant. States give photo IDs which are just like drivers licenses except they don't say "drivers license", you don't have to pass any driving tests, and you can't drive with them. Otherwise they look and work the same and every employee trained to look at drivers licenses will accept them without hesitation.