Thirteen police departments throughout the county, plus the state police barracks, served as drop-off sites Saturday as part of National Drug Take-Back Day. As with the previous nine Take-Back events, sites will be set up throughout communities nationwide so local residents can return their unwanted, unneeded, or expired prescription drugs for safe disposal. “I encourage everyone to clean out their medicine cabinets and get rid of unused medications”.
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The website, http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback/, also says National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day aims to provide a safe, convenient and responsible means of disposal, while also educating the public about the potential for abuse of these medications. An increase in prescription drug abuse has caused numerous deaths over the past 10 years.
“Prescription drugs that fall into the wrong hands, on goal or by accident, can be incredibly unsafe”, Gov. Shumlin said.
This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. The second bill would improve communication between law enforcement, health care providers and the PDMP when a prescription medication is found at a crime scene or drug overdose. One of the bills changes the requirement that the PDMP be updated within 24 hours of the dispensing of a monitored prescription drug, rather than seven days under current law, to ensure doctors have the most up-to-date information. Of those students who participated in the survey, 28 percent indicated that they obtained these prescription drugs from their own home or a friend’s home without permission.
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“Prescription drug abuse is a huge problem and this is a great opportunity for folks around the country to help reduce the threat”, said Chuck Rosenberg, acting administrator for the DEA. “To prevent misuse, we want everyone to know how to safely use, store and dispose of unused or expired medicine”. The nationwide events have collected more than 4.8 million pounds of drugs, according to the DEA.
