Kansas Meth Watch Program Gains Attention as National Model

Office of National Drug Control Policy Supports KS Meth Watch Program;
Trade Group Endorses KS Program

A drug prevention program that has contributed to a 27 percent reduction in methamphetamine (meth) lab seizures in Kansas over the past three years has been adopted as a national model to reduce or eliminate meth labs in more than 20 states.

The Kansas Retailers' Meth Watch Program was developed at the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) as a coordinated effort between retailers and law enforcement in the fight against methamphetamine production and abuse.

Scott Burns, the Deputy Director for State and Local Affairs of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy calls the Kansas Retailer's Meth Watch Program another useful tool in combating meth production in the United States. In addition, the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) adopted the Meth Watch Program as a national model for other states and retailers.

Attendees of a July workshop represented 22 states interested in establishing and implementing their own statewide programs. Those states include the following:

Additionally, Alaska, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon and Wyoming have asked KDHE for assistance in setting up their state's Meth Watch Program.

The purpose of the Meth Watch program is to limit the accessibility of meth-manufacturing ingredients, or precursors, to reduce the amount of meth precursors stolen or sold, and to provide law enforcement with valuable information when a suspicious transaction takes place. The program provides retail store managers and employees with information on ways to limit the availability of meth precursors, how to best work with law enforcement, as well as how to protect themselves from in-store inventory loss.

All of the states working to implement the Kansas Meth Watch Program have agreed to or will agree to use the logo that the Kansas Meth Watch members designed and KDHE trademarked almost three years ago. Each state must agree to only change the name of the state so that the logo remains recognized nationwide.

KDHE has agreed to allow CHPA to distribute the trademarked logo and program information on its behalf to interested parties and states.

Partners of the Kansas Retailer Meth Watch Program include Kansas Bureau of Investigation, the Kansas Methamphetamine Prevention Project, the Kansas Retail Council, Albertson's, Casey's General Stores, Dillon's, Dollar General, Food4Less, Fleming Foods, Green Lantern Stores, IGA, the, K-mart, Osco Drug Stores, the Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association of Kansas, Phillips 66, Target, Walgreens, and Wal-Mart.

For more information, contact TJ Ciaffone, (785) 368-7301, or visit our Web site at www.kdheks.gov/methlabs.

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