Interstate summit pools info
Representatives of eight states took part in the Ohio Attorney General’s Interstate Prescription Drug Abuse Summit this past fall to share strategies for fighting the epidemic and foster collaboration.
A look at who participated and what’s ahead:
- The states: Ohio, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan,Pennsylvania, and West Virginia
- The objective: To share information about what works and what doesn’t and, when appropriate, to communicate about specific cases.
- The future: The Ohio Attorney General’s Office will facilitate regular conference calls with criminal justice leaders from participating states.
Take Back Day nets 9 tons of drugs
Ohioans turned in more than 9 tons of unwanted or expired medications during this past fall’s Drug Take Back Day events. The 18,672-pound total was up more than 4,000 pounds from the fall 2010 collection.
Nationally, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) reported Americans turned in more than 188.5 tons of drugs at 5,327 Take Back Day sites in October.
The DEA logged these totals for Ohio regions:
- Cincinnati: 3,654 pounds
- Cleveland: 8,728 pounds
- Columbus: 1,455 pounds
- Dayton: 1,114 pounds
- Toledo: 2,103 pounds
- Youngstown: 1,618 pounds
The Ohio Attorney General’s Office will continue to work with local law enforcement, the DEA, and others to organize future Drug Take Back Day events.
HIDTA expands to rural counties
Adams and Scioto counties have been designated as High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTAs) based on their high rates of prescription drug abuse. The Attorney General’s Office pushed for the designation, which opens the door to federal resources to fight the problem and allows local agencies to benefit from HIDTA initiatives.
Trends worth noting
BCI’s prescription drug seizures have risen dramatically in the past year. The bureau seized 53,000 pills valued at more than $1.4 million in 2011. That compares to 10,131 pills worth $348,000 the year before.
In December, the Attorney General’s Office, Scioto County officials, and the Ohio Board of Pharmacy shut down the last pill mill in Scioto County, where at one point more than a dozen pill mills were operating.