Sheriff taking unused prescription meds

Van Wert independent/Sheriff’s Department information

Van Wert County Sheriff Stan D. Owens has released information on the upcoming National Take Back Initiative that will be held Saturday, October 29.

During that event, the sheriff’s department will be accepting prescription medication at its office at 113 N. Market St. Prescription drugs can be dropped off to the dispatcher in the sheriff’s department lobby. Collections will begin September 1 and end October 30.

The initiative addresses a vital safety and public health issue, according to Sheriff Owens. The 2009 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration’s National Survey on Drug Use and Health notes that more than 7 million Americans currently abuse prescription drugs. Each day, approximately 2,500 teenagers use prescription drugs to get high for the first time, according to the Partnership for a Drug Free America. Studies show that a majority of the abused drugs are obtained from family and friends, including the home medicine cabinet.

In an effort to address this problem, the Drug Enforcement Agency, in conjunction with state and local law enforcement agencies throughout the United States, conducted the first-ever Drug Take Back Day on September 25, 2010. The purpose of the event was to provide a venue for people who wanted to dispose of unwanted and unused prescription drugs. This effort was a huge success in removing potentially dangerous prescription drugs, particularly controlled substances, from the nation’s medicine cabinets.

There were approximately 3,000 state and local law enforcement agencies that participated in the event and, all told, Americans turned in more than 121 tons of pills during the first Take Back Day.

Due to the overwhelming success of the first Drug Take Back Day, the DEA is planning a third event as a great opportunity for those who missed the last event, or those who have subsequently accumulated unwanted, unused prescription drugs, to safely dispose of those drugs.