Many Drugs Remain Legal After Bath Salts Ban
The Denver Post
WASHINGTON—People are inventing so many new, legal ways to get high that lawmakers can't seem to keep up.
Over
the past two years, the U.S. has seen a surge in the use of synthetic
drugs made of legal chemicals that mimic the dangerous effects of
cocaine, amphetamines and other illegal stimulants.
The drugs
are often sold at small, independent stores in misleading packaging
that suggests common household items like bath salts, incense and plant
food. But the substances inside are powerful, mind-altering drugs that
have been linked to bizarre and violent behavior across the country. Law
enforcement officials refer to the drugs collectively as "bath salts,"
though they have nothing in common with the fragrant toiletries used to
moisturize skin.
President Barack Obama signed a bill into
law earlier this month that bans the sale, production and possession of
more than two dozen of the most common bath salt drugs. But health
professionals say that there are so many different varieties of the
drugs that U.S. lawmakers are merely playing catch up.
"The
moment you start to regulate one of them, they'll come out with a
variant that sometimes is even more potent," said Dr. Nora Volkow,
director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
There are
no back alleys or crack houses in America's latest drug epidemic. The
problem involves potent substances that amateur chemists make, package
and sell in stores under brands like "Ivory Wave," "Vanilla Sky" and
"Bliss" for as little as $15. Emergencies related to the drugs have
surged: The American Association of Poison Control Centers received more
than 6,100 calls about bath salt drugs in 2011—up from just 304 the
year before—and more than 1,700 calls in the first half of 2012.
The
problem for lawmakers is that it's difficult to crack down on the
drugs. U.S. laws prohibit the sale or possession of all substances that
mimic illegal drugs, but only if federal prosecutors can show that they
are intended for human use. People who make bath salts and similar drugs
work around this by printing "not for human consumption" on virtually
every packet.
Barbara Carreno, a spokeswoman for the Drug Enforcement Agency, said the intended use for bath salts is clear.
"Everyone knows these are drugs to get high, including the sellers," she said.
Many
states have banned some of the most common bath salts, which are
typically sold by small businesses like convenience stores, tobacco
shops and adult book stores. For instance, West Virginia legislators
banned the bath salt drug MDPV last year, making it a misdemeanor to
sell, buy or possess the synthetic drug. Conviction means up to six
months in jail and a $1,000 fine.
Stephanie Mitchell,
assistant manager of The Den, a tobacco and paraphernalia shop in
Morgantown, W.Va., said the store hasn't sold bath salts in the six
months that she's worked there. But strung-out users still come in and
ask for them.
"They're pretty ... cracked out, I guess would
be a good word," said Mitchell, 21, a student at West Virginia
University. "They're just kind of not all there. They're kind of sketchy
people."
Mitchell says she wouldn't sell bath salts even if
she had them, "because it's horrible, and I could get in trouble for
it."
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