Prescription Drug Take-Back Day Sept. 25
Turn in unused or expired prescription medication
September 12, 2010
On Saturday, September 25, the Sublette County Sheriff’s Office will be participating in the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day.
Community partners across the United States will take part in the first-ever, nationwide prescription drug take-back, operating collection sites around the nation where Americans can turn in their unused, unneeded, expired prescription medications. This service is free and anonymous.
Unused or expired prescription medications are a public safety issue, leading to accidental poisoning, overdose, and abuse. Pharmaceutical drugs, particularly controlled substances, taken without a prescription or a doctor’s supervision can be just as dangerous as taking illicit drugs.
According to the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), the non-medical use of prescription drugs ranks second only to marijuana as the most prevalent category of drug abuse in the United States. The survey notes that more Americans currently abuse prescription drugs than the number of those abusing cocaine, hallucinogens, and heroin combined. The 2008 Partnership Attitude Tracking Survey showed that the majority of teenagers using prescription drugs got them from family and friends, including from their home medicine cabinets.
The 2009 Monitoring the Future Survey data show that one in ten 12th graders used the pharmaceutical narcotic Vicodin for non-medical purposes.
Tablets, capsules, and all other solid dosage forms will be collected. Intravenous solutions, injectibles, and syringes will not be accepted.
For more information, go to www.dea.gov and click on the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day icon, or contact Detective Logan Gehlhausen, Sublette County Sheriff’s Office/ Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation, (307) 367-4378 ext. 392.
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