Verde Valley AZ (April 17, 2013) – A Dump the Drugs event will be held on April 27th at 7 locations county wide, including Prescott, Prescott Valley, Chino Valley, Cottonwood, Sedona, Camp Verde and Clarkdale. MATFORCE and area law enforcement are joining with the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Campaign to gather and safely dispose of unwanted prescription and over-the-counter medication.
Prescription drug abuse has risen to epidemic proportions nationwide. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), poisoning is now the number one cause of accidental death in the U.S., with pain killers as the leading cause. In Yavapai County 22% of 10th grade students and 25% of 12th grade students report abusing prescription drugs. (AZ Youth Survey, 2012)
Properly disposing of unwanted medication keeps potentially dangerous drugs from getting into the wrong hands. Over 30% of our youth say they have taken medications to abuse right out of their own homes (AYS 2012). Safe disposal also keeps drugs from being improperly disposed of and getting into our water systems.
In the greater Prescott area, prescription and over-the-counter medications can be dropped off between 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM at the following locations: Prescott Police Department, 222 S. Marina; Prescott Valley Police Department, 7601 E. Civic Circle; and the Chino Valley Police Department, 1020 W. Palomino Rd.
In the Verde Valley, prescription and over-the-counter medications can be dropped off between 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM at the following locations: Sedona Police Department, 100 Roadrunner Drive; Cottonwood Police Department, 199 S. 6th Street; Camp Verde Marshal’s Office at 646 S. First Street; and the Clarkdale Police Department, 49 N. Ninth Street.
MATFORCE encourages everyone to look through your medicine cabinet for expired or unwanted medication and bring it to one of the drop-off locations. For more information call 928-708-0100 or visit the MATFORCE website at matforce.org. Flyers for the event can be printed from the website and are also being delivered by volunteers from Triple Point Recovery Homes.