Laredo's Take Back Pill Day
By
KGNS News
Story Created:
Oct 29, 2011 at 11:00 PM CDT
Story Updated:
Oct 31, 2011
An event was held today to raise awareness on prescription drug abuse. D.E.A agents and SCAN teamed up for the National Take-Back Pill Day. Residents of Laredo were asked to come drop off any unwanted medicine.
"Unfortunately the abuse of prescription drugs has become a nationwide epidemic." Laredo D.E.A assistant special agent Rodriguez says this gives the community an opportunity to properly dispose of medications that are unused, unwanted, or expired. As many as "2,500 teens everyday are abusing prescription drugs for the first time." Rodriguez shares another statistic about where the teens get the drugs. "75% of those kids that are abusing those drugs for the first time are getting their drugs from family and friends' medicine cabinets."
Program Director of the Webb County Coalition, Melissa Cavazos, says they do an event like this every six months. "I know a lot of people don't know what to do with it, so we're giving them a chance to turn in the medication." Cavazos said they make it easy for the public to turn everything in by not even having to get out of their vehicle. "We don't ask no questions. No questions asked, just come and drop it off."
At the end of the take back pill event, organizers say they will take the discarded medicine to an undisclosed location to be burned.
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