JEFFERSON CITY ¥ Missouri lawmakers this week said the way to end the stateÕs methamphetamine lab epidemic is to require a prescription of a common cold and allergy medicine.

Legislative committees in both houses have conducted hearings on proposals to declare pseudoephedrine - an ingredient found in over-the-counter products such as Sudafed - as a controlled substance.

Most meth addicts use highly explosive substances to change the chemical makeup of the decongestant. But without it, meth cannot be made.

The proposals are the latest in a series of efforts to crack down on meth labs in Missouri, which long has had more than double the amount of meth labs than any other state, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Current law requires consumers to provide personal information at the counter when purchasing products with meth's main ingredient and limits the amount of those products one person can buy to about six 24-dose boxes of Sudafed every 30 days.

But police say they cannot keep up with the lists of people who violate the law, and meth addicts now work in groups to skirt the law by buying legal amounts of the medicine.

Proponents say pseudoephedrine control is the "silver bullet" to end meth labs in Missouri, where lab totals jumped to 1,487 in 2008 from about 1,200 in 2007, according to the Missouri Highway Patrol.

Opponents say the proposals would inconvenience the vast majority of consumers who don't use the medications to make drugs. Some also say it could make the cost skyrocket by adding doctor's visits and time off work.

Jason Grellner, Missouri Narcotics Officers Association president, said the bill wouldn't rid the state of meth labs because surrounding states do not have such a policy, but it would drastically decrease the problem.

He also said meth lab cleanup eats up too much law enforcement time and money.

House sponsor Scott Lipke, R-Jackson, said the bill targets pseudoephedrine because it's the drug's only necessary ingredient.

"This will work," he said.

Others aren't so sure.

"We're concerned that this bill might have some problems that outweigh the benefits," said Jeff Howell of the Missouri State Medical Association.

Rep. Jamilah Nasheed, D-St. Louis, said her district sees more problems with crack cocaine and heroin than meth: "I really have a problem with solving one particular addiction."

House panels must vote on the bill before it is considered by the full House. An identical process must occur in the Senate before the bill become law.

House bill is HB 496. Senate bill is SB 160.