"DALLAS -- Texas, the nation's most active death penalty state, announced Tuesday that it would become the latest to switch to single-drug executions amid a drug shortage that has left states scrambling for acceptable alternatives.
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice said it will begin using a single dose of the sedative pentobarbital to carry out death sentences. It had been using that drug in combination with two others, but its supply of one of the other drugs expired."

Texas Executions Now Use 1 Drug Instead Of 3 After Shortage

I applauded the decision of the manufacturers to simply stop producing medications that were used in executions. I notice in the article that the manufacturer will cease the sale of pentobarbital to US prisons, though that drug is also used in smaller doses for other medical uses, as is potassium. I wonder what will happen when they can't get hold of that? All medications have an expiration date.

Not sure what the difference is really. One or three drugs they are all dying more humanly than I'm sure their victims did.

Originally Posted by mountanddo

Not sure what the difference is really. One or three drugs they are all dying more humanly than I'm sure their victims did.

An interesting point. I have to wonder if one is effective as three, wouldn't one be better. Also I wonder why using expired medication would be so bad?

Originally Posted by JoshA

An interesting point. I have to wonder if one is effective as three, wouldn't one be better. Also I wonder why using expired medication would be so bad?

I used to work in a chemist (pharmacy) and we were told that expired drugs dont have the same effect as the ones that were actually in date. Maybe thats why they wouldnt use expired drugs. Obviously the more out of date the drugs were the less effect they had.

Originally Posted by JoshA

Also I wonder why using expired medication would be so bad?

I guess they got to be 100% sure that the medication is as effective as it HAS to be in these instances. Its not like its a person with a head ache thats taking aspirin thats out of date.

Perhaps, my doctor told me you can use expired medication that is less then 3 years old. Maybe they will bring back firing squads?

Originally Posted by JoshA

Perhaps, my doctor told me you can use expired medication that is less then 3 years old. Maybe they will bring back firing squads?

Using out of date medication is not really something they can do in a execution performed by the state and that has many legal issues. That YOU as a person do it is a totally different thing.
Think of it like this if you were in a hospital and you had some serious condition that can be helped with a certain medication and they give it to you out of date. It hasnt got the desired effect and you are left permanently damaged from it would you then accept what your doctor said that 3 years out of date is fine? Even though you KNOW that had the medication had full effect you would have been perfectly fine.

Originally Posted by JoshA

Perhaps, my doctor told me you can use expired medication that is less then 3 years old. Maybe they will bring back firing squads?

I read that they never told the people who had the real bullets so they'd never know if they were the ones that fired the deadly shot.

Originally Posted by mountanddo

I read that they never told the people who had the real bullets so they'd never know if they were the ones that fired the deadly shot.

That is true, there is one state I forget which one, that the general public could apply to the one of the executioners, I have to think that is crazy