Adam Tamburin
April 27, 2017
Middle Tennesseans will get a chance to unload their old prescriptions Saturday when pharmacies across the area participate in the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day.
The bi-annual event, which is supported by the Drug Enforcement Administration nationally and the BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee Health Foundation, has taken on added significance as health and law enforcement officials grapple with rising levels of opioid abuse.
Kristina Clark, co-developer of the Count It! Lock It! Drop It! program to reduce prescription drug abuse in Tennessee, said the state ranked second in the nation for opioid prescriptions and fourth in the nation for the number of opioid-related deaths. She added that getting rid of old or left over prescriptions could be a key tool in the fight against drug abuse.
“More than half of Tennesseans who use opioids recreationally indicate they get them from a friend or relative,” Clark said in a statement. “So it’s important to safely secure your prescriptions and dispose of them once they are no longer needed.”
Several local pharmacies are participating in the take-back day, including:
- Walgreens at 3010 West End Avenue,
- Walgreens at 2819 Nolensville Pike,
- Walgreens at 2500 Gallatin Avenue,
- Walgreens at 3130 Clarksville Pike,
- Walgreens at 2611 Franklin Pike,
- Walgreens at 7601 Highway 70 S,
- Plaza Pharmacy at St. Thomas West at 4230 Harding Pike, and
- Midtown Express Pharmacy at St. Thomas Midtown at 300 20th Avenue North
Drug stores in Franklin, Brentwood, Murfreesboro, Gallatin, Goodlettsvile, Hendersonville, Portland Springfield, White House, Lebanon, La Vergne, Spring Hill, and Dickson are also participating.
Read more in the Tennessean.
Adam Tamburin is a higher education reporter at the Tennessean. Adam began covering higher education for The Tennessean in January 2015 after two years as the organization’s early morning breaking news reporter.
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