Praise For September?s National Prescription Drug ?Take-Back? Day
Saturday, October 11th, 2014 -- 8:24 AM
Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen and Department of Natural Resources Secretary Cathy Stepp praised Wisconsin residents for their participation in September?s National Prescription Drug ?Take-Back? Day, which resulted in 17 tons, or 34,026 lbs, of unwanted, expired or unused prescription drugs being dropped off at more than 175 collection sites statewide, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, which coordinates the biannual ?Take-Back? events nationwide.?Estimates suggest 70 percent of people who misuse prescription drugs get them from family and friends,? Van Hollen said. ?We also know addiction to prescription drugs can lead to heroin use, which is impacting Wisconsin significantly. I encourage everyone to help law enforcement by getting rid of your unused medications and educating your loved ones about the risk.?
?I want to thank everyone who participated in this very important effort,? Cathy Stepp, Secretary of the Department of Natural Resources, said. ?Dropping off unused drugs for proper disposal, rather than discarding them in landfills or dumping them down drains, is a great step toward protecting our natural resources, especially our drinking water and groundwater.?
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