Today the House passed bipartisan legislation introduced by U.S. Representatives Rick Larsen (WA-02) and Fred Upton (MI-06) to crack down on the bulk sale of dextromethorphan (DXM), an ingredient of cough syrup that taken in extremely large quantities produces a hallucinogenic high and can cause brain damage, seizures and death. The bill passed the House today by a vote of 407 to 8 and must clear the Senate before it can be signed into law.
“Four years ago, two teenagers in Whatcom County died after overdosing on DXM they purchased online,” said Larsen. “Kids today continue to have easy access to large quantities of this dangerous drug. Banning the bulk sale of DXM on the Internet is a commonsense step that will save lives.”
The Dextromethorphan Distribution Act of 2009 will help prevent the abuse of the drug by making it illegal to distribute unfinished DXM to a person or company not previously registered with the FDA or approved under federal or state law. Larsen and Upton’s bipartisan legislation passed the House in both the 109th Congress (December 2006) and the 110th Congress (October 2007) but failed to clear the Senate. With research indicating that more kids than ever are abusing cough medicine, Upton and Larsen are optimistic that the bill will finally gain enough support to become law.
“The deadly reality is that our teens think that it’s safe to get high off of DXM because it is a common ingredient in cough syrup – the passage of the DXM bill in the House is an important step in shattering that myth,” said Upton. “This is too important an issue not to get done – kids’ lives literally hang in the balance and I urge the Senate to swiftly follow suit. This commonsense piece of legislation will put an end to the bulk sale of DXM over the Internet, and keep our kids safe from the dangers of this type of drug abuse.”
DXM is a non-narcotic cough suppressant used in many over-the-counter cough and cold medicines. While medicines containing DXM are used safely by millions of Americans each year, DXM can be deadly when taken in extremely large quantities.
“The abuse of dextromethorphan has lead to the deaths of young people across the country. Whatcom County suffered the loss of two teenagers who purchased the drug from a supplier in Indiana through use of the Internet,” said Whatcom County Sheriff Bill Elfo, who investigated the DXM overdoses in Larsen’s district in Washington state. “The ready availability of this drug is attributable to inadequate controls. Congressman Larsen and his colleagues have shown true leadership in their pursuit of regulations that will better control the distribution of this product.”
Studies have shown that teenagers are obtaining unfinished DXM to get high by consuming large amounts of the powder or mixing it with alcohol. Research indicates that abuse of DXM has increased sharply in recent years. Last month, the Partnership for a Drug-Free America announced the findings of its 20th annual teen study which revealed nearly 7 percent or 1.7 million teens have used cough medicines to get high in the past year.
