Meth-a-demic

What started as a West Coast motorcycle gang craze has spread across the United States and become a troublesome epidemic--the abuse of methamphetamine. Highs and lows of meth abuse have been recorded over the past forty years as the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration enforces new rules and addicts find new ways around them, a cyclical pattern.
Meth has become increasingly easy for users to make, as pseudoephedrine and ephedrine, the essential ingredients, can be found in simple, over-the-counter cold remedies. The DEA has tried to restrict the availability of these ingredients and limit easy access off store shelves, however large and powerful pharmaceutical companies have stood as a repelling force, arguing that the proposed methods were unfair to a perfectly legitimate business. The DEA has also tried to regulate the source of the ingredients in order to lessen the problem. An accidental find of a massive drug distributor in Mexico greatly lessened the purity of meth on the streets of America, but like always, meth users found a way to get back into business.
Though meth has become relatively easy to make, it is by no means without risk. Mixing heavy chemicals that are not meant to be together in a tightened bottle causes many users to be harmed by chemical explosions and devastating burn injuries. This is one fallout of meth users being able to cook it up themselves. However, the process allows chemicals to seep into its surroundings, which could be anywhere-- and people will breath it in.
Oregon is one of the only states to successfully make medicine containing pseudoephedrine and ephedrine a prescription drug, and meth labs have accordingly decreased by ninety percent. In states such as Kentucky, pharmaceutical companies have hired lobbyists that make it sound as if legislation wants to take away people's cold medicine. It is one big struggle between an organization that wants to stop the abuse of meth and decrease crime rate, and a company that makes it's money by selling cold medicine.
Meth contamination is such a large issue, it shows up in many places one might not expect--schools, for example. There have been instances where students have been reported to come to school smelling of meth chemicals, due to secret math labs of the parents at home. Similarly, teachers who have been found hiding meth in drawers and purses, secret meth labs found on playgrounds, and so on. Meth doesn't only affect the users, but the people around the users as well. It is a problem that must be solved, if catastrophe and crime are to be prevented.

Sources:


http://www.npr.org/2013/09/26/226476602/big-pharma-and-meth-cooks-agree-keep-cold-meds-over-the-counter

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/meth/etc/synopsis.html

http://methlabhomes.com/meth-contamination-in-schools/