NEW JERSEY – The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is launching “Secure Your Meds” a winter campaign that is urging the public to secure their unused medications.
With the ongoing health crisis of COVD-19, the DEA finds it highly important to address the issue of controlled prescription drug misuse. The DEA states how with individuals spending more time at home due to the pandemic, now is a good time to clean out your medicine cabinets and secure unused medications.
The Secure Your Meds campaign will bring awareness to other about the importance of keeping prescription and other medications stored securely. The DEA recommends that any medications that are no longer used or have reached their expiration date should be secured until they can be disposed. These are 11,000 authorized year-round collection sites where people can dispose of medications correctly. Individuals can also dispose of unwanted medication at the next DEA National Prescription Drug Take Back Day.
“The current pandemic has taken some of the focus away from the ongoing opioid epidemic,” said Special Agent in Charge of the DEA’s New Jersey Division Susan A. Gibson. “We want to remind the public of the importance of cleaning out your medicine cabinets or securing your prescription medications. These small actions can remove the temptation to experiment with prescription medications in the home.”
According to the DEA, the rates of prescription drug abuse in the United States are alarmingly high along with the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs. Individuals take and abuse medications from family and friends, including from home medicine cabinets.
For more information on authorized collection sites, visit apps2.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/pubdispsearch/spring/main?execution=e1s1
For information on safe at-home disposal, visit
archive.epa.gov/region02/capp/web/pdf/ppcpflyer.pdf
