Proposal would not only ensure a steady supply of lethal drugs but it would also eliminate the secrecy of who is supplying the state with execution drugs
Thomson/Reuters reports that Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster wants the state to fund and operate its own compounding pharmacy to ensure it has a steady supply of execution drugs. His proposal would also eliminate the need to identify outside drug suppliers as demanded by attorneys for the condemned and the opponents of capital punishment.
The Europeans have cut off the supply of execution drugs and many American pharmaceutical companies and compounding pharmacies have been intimidated into refusing to furnish lethal drugs to the states.
Koster made his proposal Thursday in a speech delivered to the Metropolitan St. Louis bar association. Here is what he said:
As a matter of policy, Missouri should not be reliant on merchants whose identities must be shielded from public view or who can exercise unacceptable leverage over this profound state act.
Eliminating outside business interests from Missouri's execution protocol would improve the high level of public transparency that is demanded in the exercise of this extraordinary state power.
Koster also said that even though it is legal to keep the identity of compounding pharmacies secret, "it may not be prudent."
It’s a great idea, but how will they justify hiring one or more pharmacists to compound drugs that are only used occasionally. It’s either part-time employment or a full-time job if the pharmacists compound the drugs used by prison medical facilities. That would run headlong into opposition by established pharmaceutical companies. And the attorneys for the condemned would still raise the issue of pain and suffering by their clients.
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