DEA New England Field Division Collects A Record 43.4 Tons Of Prescription Drugs During The 11th National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day
BOSTON - The final tally is in from the 11th National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day on April 30th, 2016. The Drug Enforcement Administration’s New England Division and its partners, over the course of four hours, collected 86,900 pounds or 43.4 tons of expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs at 551 collection sites throughout New England. This is in comparison to the first National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day on September 2010, when the New England Division collected 25,810 pounds of unwanted drugs. It is estimated that 10% of the drugs collected are opioid pain killers which would represent approximately 8,600 pounds of opioids that are out of medicine cabinets and potentially off our streets.
“We are pleased to see that New Englanders are motivated and continue to make their homes safer for our youth,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Ferguson. “Approximately 78 Americans are dying on a daily basis across America from a prescription drug overdose. These efforts help remove unwanted prescription pills that can be abused, stolen, or resold which helps our continued dedication to combat the prescription pill, heroin, and fentanyl epidemic of substance abuse and addiction.”
The following is a breakdown of collected weights for the six New England states:
Connecticut 8,815.50 pounds
Massachusetts 25,028 pounds
Maine 31,960 pounds
New Hampshire 12,560 pounds
Rhode Island 3,460 pounds
Vermont 5,094.60 pounds
