It works; so, let's get rid of it. Matter of fact make all OTC's illegal and legalize pot, meth, coke and heroine. Then the trippers can really fly.

People have been abusing OTC since they were invented. Many of our great grand parents had a Laudnum habit.

It's a little late, I have written and called especially about Delsym which has legitimate use but has outrageous potential for abuse. The stuff lasts 12 hours!!! I think all cough medicines should be regualted by the pharmacist and require driver's license presentation.

Let 'em fry their brains. If they don't know enough to do the research and see that disassociatives cause perforations in the brain tissue, they deserve it. There's no reason to punish legitimate users for the actions of some idiots.

It's not like this is contributing to crimes. I'd like to see someone try to rob someone or get into a car while on disassociatives.

Anyway, everyone should know that if you want an altered mental state, you go down to the smoke shop and buy some salvia. Legal in almost every state, less toxic than tap water (Seriously), no lingering mental effects, great hallucinagen for just enough time for it to be interesting but not long enough to screw with you (Hallucinagenic effects end after 5 minutes, lingering non-hallucinagenic effects to as much as an hour)

Give me a break. Why is it that responsible people always have to pay for the stupidity of others? There is nothing like running to the market later in the evening because you have a sinus infection and discovering that you can't purchase your sinus med until the following day, because it is locked behind the counter in the pharmacy dept. . Thanks to all the blithering idiots making meth. Next thing you know they will be locking up aspirin as well.

I only use cough syrup when absolutely necessary. Let's face it. Once the FDA took the alcohol out they don't work worth a darn. Mom's old fashioned whiskey, lemon and honey cough syrup works better than the OTC ones.

Robotripping...lol. Just buy weed or salvia. Its probably cheaper, and you wont end up in the ER from drinking two bottles of Robitussin...I can barely take the recommended dosage much less chug a bottle or two of the stuff.. <HURK>

When is the government going to stop penalizing the huge majority of non-abusers in order to (ineffectively, I might add) police the minority who choose to abuse drugs of all kinds? The actions of the FDA to lock up the ingredients to make meth has done little, if anything, to curb the makers, sellers and users of meth. The meth problem is rampant, and those who trade in it are ALWAYS able to get the products they need to make it, despite stores locking up everything, changing formulas, or requiring prescriptions for it. It doesn't even slow them down! Who suffers for that FDA action? We, the non-abusers who have safely and prudently treated our colds/flu with those OTC meds for many years without problems. I appreciate much that the FDA does. But restricting or completely usurping our ability to make thoughtful choices in order to "control" the actions of a minority group is completely ludicrous. Makes me think about the heavy-handed enforcer tactics of dictators.

I agree with regulation and strickter control of cough medicines . My teenage son overdosed on dex. and tried to kill me with an axe ! luckily I was able to over power him or I wouldn't be here right now. He took the over the counter drug corcidin. Of course the drug companies will say that there medications are safe afterall they care more about the almighty dollar than human lives .

Why is it that responsible people always have to pay for the stupidity of others? There is nothing like running to the market later in the evening because you have a sinus infection and discovering that you can't purchase your sinus med until the following day, because it is locked behind the counter in the pharmacy dept

It's really bad for people who live in small towns. Many OTC allergy and/or drugs aren't even available at all! I'd sure hate to see this happen to cough medicine as well.

To Ralph -- while I am sorry for your son, should everyone suffer because he overdosed? You can overdose and die on WATER. Do we need to regulate water too? At some point, responsibility comes into play. You can't blame a drug company if someone takes MORE than the recommended dosage.

It's high time we all took responsibility for our actions. I'm tired of an over-obsessive/protective government subverting the rights of adults in this country. If your kids were brought up properly, they wouldn't NEED a watch dog group, and the rest of us wouldn't have to pay the price for their stupidity. If they're that dumb, let them burn their brains out. Why should the majority of the responsible citizens have to pay for their lack of self-control. We want LESS government not more!!!!!!!!!!

i give up.

Curbing use of legal OTC drugs is illegal. FDA should just do their job by telling cosumer if things are safe to eat or not and drugs are safe to use or not. Curbing use of OTC drugs is like policing use of OTC drugs; I don't think that is FDA priorities. FDA should stick it to the FBI to policing use of OTC drugs.

This makes me really angry! It is so unfair that the majority of responsible Americans are penalized because of a few people who cannot control themselves. When I am sick and want to buy something from the pharmacy I should be able to.  They already swipe your I.D. when you buy Nyquil and other medications.  Isn't that enough.  It is bad enough that pseudoephedrine is behind the pharmacy counter. Now these medications too? There is potential abuse with everything from alcohol to caffeine to prescription medications.  There will always be abusers.  You cannot control everyone.  In the UK and most of Europe coedine is sold over the counter in small doses (you have to ask the pharmacist).  But you take one dose and your headache is gone, not like Tylenol which sometimes doesn't work for a tough headache. I wish Americans weren't so excessive and could show a little restraint.  Also I might add the FDA approves drugs all of the time that hurt you and then yank them off of the market and say Whoops! Sheesh!  Take some responsibility people!

Not all abusers are teenagers. I've know much older adults who routinely abused it and ended up in ER multiple times. Yeah, I think it at least needs to be behind the counter. Dextromethorphan has been abused for years and finally someone notices.

Oh once I spent time getting to know Robitussin boy...Now is it the Guaffanison ? Or the Dextromethorphan ...excuse the spelling...Frankly the old green Tuss - Ornade with codeine used to be the best I believe ...To alleviate cough that is ....However water is the best expectorant really....The guy I spent getting to know did bottles of Robitussin a day and the pills of Robitussin....He was a gem...He used to decore an apple and fill with sugar...let it ferment I believe and rot and eat it and claimed it was the best high ever...something like that....He was also referred to as The Klonopin Cowboy and King Klonapin as he liked that also ...There really used to be research back in the day to show guiffanison alone helped fibromyalgia or myofascial pain syndrome ...As a therapy .....Perhaps thats the deal here ....Who knows but Oh I wonder if they still make that delicious green Tuss - Ornade with codeine .....Yummie and smooth like Courvesior !!!!

Who knows but Oh I wonder if they still make that delicious green Tuss - Ornade with codeine .....Yummie and smooth like Courvesior !!!!

Yeah they still make it.  but you need a script for it.  Yummie and smooth?!?!  Uhh...ok.

I have lost all faith in the FDA after seeing how Aspatame was pushed through for approval. Too many of these federal agencies as so ineffective at what they were designed to do. Passing new laws to give them 'more teeth' makes no sense either. They are too easily bribed.

I am 56 and I have taken sudafed my entire life for my sinus problems and because of a few crack heads I am unable to obtain it at all in Eureka, Mo and have to travel to another town, and then I am limited in the amount I can buy in a month and have to show my ID; my grand daughter got a bad cold, and because I had bought my alloted amount of sudafed, I could not obtain the Motrin Cold for children, which you also have to show ID for; Our government now wants to control cough medicine because some morons can't read instructions or abuse it, all in the name of "It's for your own good"; just a little more restriction on our lives, and personally I do not care about the abusers. They are only hurting themselves and the government is giving them all the control. There is absolutely no common sense or logic to all this madness...just get sick and be miserable or get so sick you have to go to an ER; Stupid!

the fda should have more important things to worry about than cough medicine. just let it go. think of it as "natural selection" at work. we really don't need people breeding that are so stupid as to overdose and die on robitussin. the "herd" really needs be thinned out anyway. humans are in danger of being reduced to slobbering idiots with the type of people that are reproducing.

Ive had trouble with an allergy to oak trees (had rast allergy test about 15 years ago and i am allergic to oak). The damn things are everywhere - near work, homes etc. so I cant really get away from them. When they release their pollen (typically at night) I cant sleep worth a damn due to the thick nasty (but clear) nasal drainage i get. Ornade was the only thing that ever worked to allow me to sleep and halt the drainage problem. Problem is the docs would only prescribe it for 10 days at a time and theyd charge me 150 for an office visit and the drug would cost 80-90 bucks for a 10-14 day supply. I gave up trying to get it since the cost made it insane - now I just have to remember to take oil of oregano (a few drops a day) and if i do that as a preventative/prophlyaxis after about 10 days my allergies fade away. Its a lot cheaper as a bottle from GNC lasts me 5-6 months and costs 20 bucks. The abusers of presc meds will get their fix no matter what. Its the common people who end up suffering. Fortunately if you research with old fashioned recipes/herb stuff sometimes they can help (like oil of oregano did for me)