Chief Deputy Aaron Corwin, Marion County Sheriff’s Office, reports that 516 pounds of pills were collected during last Saturday’s Medication Take-Back Day at the OhioHealth Marion Medical Campus. Over two hundred cars came through the drop-off, with a total of 212 participants, including walk-ins.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) promotes these medication take-back days twice a year. Last October (2018) communities across the country collected over 900,000 pounds of unused medication. According to their 2017 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, six million Americans misused controlled prescription drugs. The DEA study showed that “a majority of abused drugs were obtained from family and friends, often from the home medicine cabinet.”
Marion County Sheriff deputies, along with MARMET Drug Task Force officers, collected unused medications , then Brad DeCamp, ADAMH Board Executive Director, along with Ohio Health pharmacist Dan Sheridan and pharmacy students from Ohio Northern University, identified and tallied them on site. Some of the controlled substances included 101 doses of Hydrocodone (Vicodin, Norco), 69 doses of Gabapentin (Neurontin), 65 of Oxycodone (Oxycontin, Roxycodone), and 37 doses of Tramadol (Ultram), with a total of 328 controlled substances doses.
Keeping those drugs out of the wrong hands helps prevent overdoses, addiction, and drug-related crime. These collections also provide a safe, confidential alternative to flushing. All medicine bottles and boxes are recycled at Marca Industries, with identities protected.
For those who missed the event last Saturday, unused medication can be dropped off anytime at the Marion City Police Department (233 West Center Street), the Marion County Sheriff’s Office (889 Marion Williamsport Road East), and Walgreens Pharmacy (1321 Delaware Avenue).
Saturday’s event was sponsored by MARMET Drug Task Force, Aqua Ohio, ADAMH Board, OhioHealth, Marion County Recycling & Litter Prevention, and DKMM Solid Waste District.
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