WASHINGTON (AP) - The Supreme Court agreed Monday to decide if the government can regulate the mixing of drugs at local pharmacies.

The Bush administration had urged the court to take the case, arguing there were serious health implications in allowing unregulated drug-mixing.

The government has wide inspection authority over drug makers in their plants, but this case involves pharmacies that dilute or alter prescription drugs to make them easier to consume or for use by a child or someone with allergies.

The practice, known as compounding, is done by pharmacists or physicians.

Congress changed guidelines for compounding in 1997, and the government was sued in Nevada by pharmacies that frequently mix drugs.

The Food and Drug Administration contends it can regulate companies that advertise mixing services or have sales personnel.

A federal appeals court sided with pharmacies, ruling that the advertising rules violated their First Amendment rights.

The court said the FDA could instead require disclaimers stating that compounded drugs being advertised had not been subjected to the FDA's approval process.

Unrestricted mixing “would seriously impair the integrity of the drug approval process,” the Bush administration told the Supreme Court.

The case is Thompson v. Western States Medical Center, 01-344.

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