BPD to host drug take back event

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The Blair Police Department will participate in the Drug Enforcement Administration's 21st National Prescription Drug Take Back Day on Saturday.

The event, which will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., offers free and anonymous disposal of unneeded medications. Items accepted include tablets, capsules, patches and other solid forms of prescription drugs. Liquids, syringes and other sharps, and illicit drugs will not be accepted.

According to a report published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, a majority of people who misused a prescription medication obtained the medicine from a family member or friend. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that last year, more than 93,000 people died of drug overdoses in the United States, marking the largest number of drug-related deaths ever recorded in a year. Opioid-related deaths accounted for 75 percent of all overdose deaths in 2020.