Grand Forks Air Force Base taking back unwanted prescription, over-the-counter drugs

  • Published
  • By 319th AIR BASE WING PUBLIC AFFAIRS
GRAND FORKS AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. --  Help prevent pill abuse and theft and rid your home of potentially dangerous expired, unused and unwanted prescription and over-the-counter drugs during the National Drug Take-Back Day on the base on April 28, 2012.

Base officials - and the Drug Enforcement Agency - have joined forces to collect the medications from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the exchange store lobby. The service is free, anonymous and no questions are asked, according to a DEA news release.

According to the release, last October Americans turned in 377,080 pounds--188.5 tons--of prescription drugs at over 5,300 sites operated by the DEA and nearly 4,000 state and local law enforcement partners. In its three previous Take Back events, DEA and its partners took in almost a million pounds--nearly 500 tons--of pills.

This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse.

Rates of prescription drug abuse in the United States are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs.

Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet. In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines--flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash--both pose potential safety and health hazards.

Four days after the first event, Congress passed the Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act of 2010, which amends the Controlled Substances Act to allow an "ultimate user" of controlled substance medications to dispose of them by delivering them to entities authorized by the Attorney General to accept them.

The Act also allows the Attorney General to authorize long term care facilities to dispose of their residents' controlled substances in certain instances.

DEA is drafting regulations to implement the Act, a process that can take as long as 24 months. Until new regulations are in place, local law enforcement agencies like the 319th Security Forces Squadron and the DEA will continue to hold prescription drug take-back events every few months.

The Pharmacy, Demand Reduction, ADAPT, Patient Safety and other agencies across the base will host informational booths during the event.