House OKs bill allowing legal purchase of cold medicine (without Dr.)

By Oregon House Republican Caucus,

HB 2648 allows pseudoephedrine products to be sold without prescription, allowing Oregonians to choose lower-cost options while skipping the doctor bill

A bill from Representative Bill Post (R-Keizer) to allow the sale of pseudoephedrine products without a prescription was approved by House legislators today.

This is the third time that Rep. Post has attempted to remove an unnecessary barrier for Oregonians to lower their health care costs when purchasing pseudoephedrine products. Products such as Sudafed will still be restricted to people who are at least 18 years of age with a valid ID under the proposal.

Rep. Post was joined by a bipartisan group of lawmakers who sponsored the proposal.

The impact on health care consumers’ wallets could be significant. Currently, purchasing a pseudoephedrine product requires a visit to your doctor to receive a prescription, which comes with an expensive bill.

“With health care costs skyrocketing, this simple bill to reduce the cost of a common cold medicine should be a no-brainer,” said Rep. Post. “We shouldn’t be asking people to jump through very expensive hoops by visiting a doctor to obtain a prescription to common cold medicine, especially when Oregon is the ONLY state requiring a prescription.”

HB 2648 was passed by a majority of House legislators.