I have a cold, and I ran out of cough medicine, so I stopped at the local Walgreens to get some more. I like to treat a cold with dextromethorphan (a cough suppressant), guaifenesin (an expectorant), and pseudoephedrine (a nasal decongestant). In other words, Robitussin CF.
Of course, that last ingredient, pseudoephedrine, is a key ingredient for making crystal meth these days, so the drug warriors have passed laws requiring pharmacies to keep it behind the counter. I had to pick out a hanging card for the right stuff and give it to the pharmacist. The cards are poorly displayed, so it took me forever to find the right one—the first one I grabbed turned out to be the infant formulation. I eventually found the card for the Walgreens generic version, but when the pharmacist went to get it, he told me it was sold out and they only had Robitussin.
Once I got the right stuff, the pharmacist needed to see my ID and copy down my name and address before he’d sell it to me. I asked him who gets the records, and he said no one. Apparently, they have to keep the records in case law enforcement ever wants to get a court order to look at them or something.
What a total waste of all our time.
Leave a Reply