Detectives Announce Second “Operation Medicine Cabinet” And Highlight Prescription Drug Overdose As Leading Cause Of Accidental Death In Pinellas County After Automobile Crashes
Release Number: 09-277
Who:
Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office
Investigative Operations Bureau
-Narcotics Unit
St. Petersburg Police Department
LiveFree! Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Pinellas
What: Detectives assigned to the Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Unit announce upcoming event: “Operation Medicine Cabinet” and highlight prescription drug overdose as leading cause of accidental death in Pinellas County after automobile crashes.
Operation Medicine Cabinet is a multi-agency pharmaceutical take-back day aimed at addressing the problem of prescription drug abuse and keeping a clean environment.
Where: Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office
Drop off locations:
Kmart (west parking lot)
7949 113 Street N, Seminole
The Fountains of Boca Ciega Bay
1255 Pasadena Ave South, South Pasadena
Sweetbay Supermarket
1681 Main Street, Dunedin
Walmart
3801 Tampa Road, Oldsmar
St. Petersburg Police Department
Drop off locations:
Sweetbay Supermarket
1794 22nd Street South, St. Petersburg
Sweetbay Supermarket
7491 4th Street North, St. Petersburg
Sweetbay Supermarket
6095 9th Avenue North, St. Petersburg
When: “Operation Medicine Cabinet” will take place between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 14, 2009.
How/Why: Sheriff’s Office announces second "Operation Medicine Cabinet" event where citizens can drop off their unused prescription drugs. Last spring over a ton of prescription drugs were collected in the first ever “Operation Medicine Cabinet” event.
According to statistics prescription drugs are the number one abused drug in the United States, now surpassing all other illicit drugs. Nine people die daily in the State of Florida due to prescription drug abuse. In Pinellas County, prescription drug overdose is the leading cause of accidental death after automobile crashes.
In order to address this issue, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office is participating in a multi-agency collaborative pharmaceutical take-back day aimed at reducing prescription drug abuse and keeping a clean environment.
“Operation Medicine Cabinet” is scheduled from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 14, 2009. Pinellas County will have a total of seven drop-off locations. Four will be located in the Sheriff’s Office jurisdiction and three in the St. Petersburg Police Department jurisdiction as listed above.
The operation will give residents a chance to bring unused or expired prescription medications to various locations in their community for safe disposal.
“The first “Operation Medicine Cabinet,” which was held in May of this year, was very successful. We collected over a ton of prescription medications. Since that first operation we have received numerous calls from the public requesting a second collection event. We have again partnered with the St. Petersburg Police Department and we have expanded the number of collection sites to seven countywide. Volunteers from LiveFree! Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Pinellas will also be on hand assisting with the collection at several of the locations. It is our goal to have two such collection events every year,” said Captain Robert Alfonso of the Narcotics Division.
In addition, the program provides a safe way of destroying the pharmaceuticals through incineration. By burning the pharmaceuticals as opposed to flushing or sending the medication to the landfill, polluting the environment can be avoided.
For further information please contact the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Office at (727) 582-6221.
See attached flier for additional information.
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