Governor says he’d accept a compromise on cold medicine law

Governor Tom Vilsack says he will accept the idea of allowing Iowans to buy at least a couple of doses of common cold remedies that contain pseudoephedrine. Vilsack’s comments come as legislators devise the final version of a bill that seeks to restrict sales of cold medications that contain the ingredient. Meth-cookers go from store to store, stealing or buying large amounts of cold medications because pseudoephedrine is the main ingredient for the illegal drug. Vilsack says he’s grateful both the House and Senate have voted to support versions of the bill. The Governor says 10-member panel of legislators who’ll write the bill’s final version — a conference committee — will come out with an arrangement that send the strongest message to meth-cookers. “I do not want this watered down,” Vilsack says. While he would accept a bill that allows Iowans to buy “very small quantities” of cold and allergy medications that contain pseudoephedrine, he wants most of the stuff behind a counter, and he wants people to be forced to show an I.D. when they buy it. “We’ve gone through this process to come up with the strongest possible bill,” Vilsack says. “There ought to be no disagreement about this. This legislation should get passed and get passed soon.”Vilsack says he’s willing to let legislators work out the details, but he wants the final product to be “the toughest bill in the country.”