The ban targets the synthetic marijuana and synthetic stimulants that are key to bath salts, as well as other designer drugs such as Spice and K-2.
“This is just a way to try to keep ahead of the game,” state Department of Health spokeswoman Julie Graham said Monday. “Even if they try to change the existing formulation of the drug, it will still (be) covered under the ban.”
The Pharmacy Board temporarily banned the drugs in April. The permanent ban will be in effect by Nov. 3 and gives law enforcement clear authority to prosecute the manufacture, sale and possession of these chemicals.
Washington is one of a growing list of states that have taken action against bath salts, which are inexpensive and easy to find on the Internet. The federal Drug Enforcement Administration recently announced a yearlong, nationwide ban against the substances.
The drugs have been at the center of a new wave of worried calls to poison control centers in Washington and nationwide. Last year, the centers received about 300 calls about the synthetic drugs. So far this year, they have logged more than 4,700.
Staff writer Stacey Mulick and the Minneapolis Star Tribune contributed to this report.
