News Flash

(Roanoke County, VA—February 7, 2018) In an “all-hands-on-deck” approach, local, state and federal law enforcement representatives came together Wednesday to call on local pharmacies to join them in a broad-based, 26-county grassroots campaign to help keep legally-prescribed medications off the streets, out of the water supply and out of our local schools.

The “Lonely Drop-Box” project, a community engagement effort addressing the local opioid and addiction crisis and led by the Prevention Council of Roanoke County, joins with law enforcement in an effort to dramatically increase the number of medication disposal drop-boxes in the 26-county “neighborhood” of The Urgent Love Initiative (http://www.UrgentLove.org).

Four thousand (4,000) prepared postcards are being mailed by local citizens to the CEOs of the four largest chain store pharmacies doing business in the 13,000-square mile region. There are a total of 217 chain store, independently-owned and franchise pharmacies in the area, which include: CVS/Target (61 pharmacies), Walgreens/RiteAid (27 pharmacies), Walmart/Sam’s Club (30 pharmacies), and Kroger (22 pharmacies).

The law enforcement community is on the front lines of the opioid epidemic; keeping prescription medications off the streets is of paramount importance. Medications in the home are vulnerable to being stolen by anyone who has access to those areas, including kids, friends of kids, relatives, neighbors, housekeepers, and contractors.

In-store medication disposal drop-boxes located inside a pharmacy at the point-of-sale provides the most intuitive and logical solution for customers to safely and conveniently dispose of their unused medications. Currently, only 8 of the 217 pharmacies in the 26-county “neighborhood” offer customers in-store drop-boxes. Comparatively, 17 local law enforcement agencies do so.

A data-demonstrated need
On October 28, 2017, 2.75 tons of medications were collected in a twice-yearly take-back program from the same 26 counties. The program is largely made possible by the efforts and contribution of the law enforcement community. However, the ability for citizens to safely and conveniently dispose of medications is a daily need, versus a biannual one. Local data demonstrates the need and desire for the safe disposal of medications.

• Up to 71 percent of prescribed pills go unused.
• Up to 92 percent of patients have unused opioids after a surgery. 90 percent fail to dispose of leftover pills in the recommended ways.
• Up to 14 percent of patients fill prescriptions but do not take any of the pills. 77 percent report their opioids are not stored in locked containers.

Sources: Five studies integrated by Johns Hopkins, 11/2017

Educational authority and students doing their part
Students at Roanoke County Public Schools’ Burton Center for Arts & Technology are completing the construction of their second medication drop-box being built as a class project for the Vinton Police Department. Their first project resides within the Roanoke County Sherriff’s office and has proven a success, collecting unused medications from citizens who drop them off, and filling to capacity approximately every six weeks.

Win-win
Pharmacies have an opportunity to do their part to help address our local addiction crisis by providing convenient and intuitive point-of-sale drop boxes, while increasing their level of customer care and demonstrating their concern for the local community-at-large.

Website Links

The Urgent Love Initiative - a 26-county “neighborhood” initiative developing innovative and collaborative ways to address our local addiction epidemic. www.UrgentLove.org

“Lonely Drop Box” - a community engagement project of The Urgent Love Initiative, asking pharmacies doing business within our 26-county “neighborhood” to step-up and do their part by providing in-store medication disposal drop-boxes. www.LonelyDropBox.org

The Prevention Council
The Urgent Love Initiative and its Lonely Drop-box project are the Prevention Council’s innovative effort to directly address our local addiction crisis. As a community coalition, the Council exists as a partnership of parents, youth, school, faith, law enforcement, business, medical, and other community leaders. The ultimate goal of the Council is to identify the critical risk behaviors and substance abuse issues that threaten the health and development of our local community. www.roanokeprevention.org