KINGSTON – The Ulster County Sheriff’s Office Prescription Medication Drop-Off Program collected roughly 335 pounds of prescription medication in 2015. The program provides people a place to dispose of their unused prescription medications instead of flushing them down the drain or throwing them in the garbage where they can contaminate groundwater.
Sheriff Paul Van Blarcum noted that prescription drug abuse is on the rise across the county. Prescription drugs such as painkiller can be highly addictive and every bit as dangerous as street drugs, he said.
Fatal drug overdoses are now the primary cause of death due to unintentional injury in the US, exceeding even motor vehicle deaths, according to the US Centers for Disease Control.
To help stop prescription drugs from falling into the wrong hands, take advantage of prescription drug boxes after the prescribed patient no longer need them. Parents should consider locking up prescription drugs in their home to protect their children.
