A Good Idea on Two Fronts

Operation Medicine Cabinet is an effort to halt the abuse of prescription and over-the-counter drugs.  Here in New Jersey, the Office of the Attorney General, the New Jersey Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration and The Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey have joined forces to address the problems associated with teenagers abusing medicines commonly found in homes.  It seems that while the use of street drugs has declined in recent years, teenagers are increasingly taking prescription and over-the-counter drugs to get high. 

This coming weekend, Operation Medicine Cabinet will collect expired and unused prescription and over-the-counter drugs at sites across the state.  Between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 14th, we'll all be able to drop off the medicines that we no longer want or need at designated sites.  Sites include community centers, police stations and government offices.  To find the site closest to your home, follow this link and click on the map: http://www.operationmedicinecabinetnj.com//index.htm.

We applaud the organizers of this effort not just because it will remove un-needed drugs from homes and thereby reduce the chances that the drugs will be abused. By collecting these drugs from consumers and disposing of them properly, Operation Medicine Cabinet personnel will also be reducing pollution in our local waterways. Pharmaceutical contamination of water is a serious problem. For decades, people have routinely flush unused medicines down toilets. Water treatment techniques remove bacteria, fecal matter, certain chemicals and many other contaminants, but traces of pharmaceuticals can remain in the water where they may have serious detrimental effects on aquatic life and on consumers of the water, including humans. While we don’t have a clear understanding of the problems, the potential for endocrine disruption is particularly troubling.

Until more research is done, we won't know how to completely avoid contaminating rivers, streams, lakes and aquifers with unused and unwanted medicines. For now, our best bet is to take them to collection events like the ones that will take place on Saturday. If you can't get your prescription and over-the-counter drugs to one of the sites this weekend, please follow the following federal guidelines (Office of National Drug Control Policy October 2009) for disposing them:

1. Take your prescription drugs out of their original containers.
2. Mix drugs with an undesirable substance, such as cat litter or used coffee grounds.
3. Put the mixture into a disposable container with a lid, such as an empty margarine tub, or into a sealable bag.
4. Conceal or remove any personal information, including Rx number, on the empty containers by covering it with black permanent marker or duct tape, or by scratching it off.
5. Place the sealed container with the mixture, and the empty drug containers, in the trash

Drug abuse and pollution of natural systems are two problems that our state faces every day.  It isn't every day that we have an opportunity to address them both in such an easy fashion -- we encourage all of our members and friends to take advantage of Operation Medicine Cabinet this weekend!