NAMPA, Idaho — The National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is on Oct. 26. Law enforcement agencies all over the nation offered people a safe way to get rid of their unused prescription, and Idaho was no different. Across the Treasure Valley, police departments participated in the event. In Nampa, officer Jacob Wisler said the Nampa Police Department (NPD) was able to get a lot of drugs off the street.
"So, yesterday, we had approximately 100 and 50 vehicles drive through our uh disposal site and it yielded, we had 10 total boxes yielding over 200 pounds of prescription drugs that will eventually be incinerated and disposed of," Wisler said.
He said prescription drugs are generally safe when used correctly, and that means following the directions. Unfortunately, sometimes prescription drug use can turn into addiction. Wisler worked with the DEA's overdose team in California from 2019 to 2023
"I responded to over 350 drug related overdose deaths, specifically fentanyl related overdose deaths. I had the opportunity to speak to those victims' family members. And a lot of times I learned that these people became addicted to drugs through initially legitimate means which were prescription drugs, and they were recovering from surgeries, they were recovering from some sort of pain and they just became addicted to them. And then they turned towards the illegal ways to obtain them," he said.
Wisler said that's why programs like the National Drug Take Back Day are important.
"Sometimes, when people become addicted, that addiction is so powerful, they'll reach out to friends and family members and try to find if there's any sort of extra pharmaceutical pills that they may have laying around. But then when that avenue runs out, they'll turn towards the streets and try to get them from illegal sources," Wisler said.
He said those illegal sources can ultimately lead to hospitalizations and death.
"Drug dealers realized that it was very easy to deal prescription pain medication illegally. And then they also started to distribute fentanyl, which was designed to look like prescription drugs in our community. It's a very cheap way for drug dealers to uh manufacture these drugs," Wisler said.
Officer Wisler said he always reminds people of the danger in using medications that are not prescribed to them.
"Even if it's a pharmaceutical drug, if you're not the one that's getting it from the manufacturer, from the doctor specifically, you don't know what's in that drug. You don't know what's in that product," he said.
The national take back program started in 2010 when law enforcement began to see a spike in illegal prescription abuse. However, there are also a lot of other reasons to get rid of unused prescriptions.
"One of the benefits of doing the drug take back day is we box them up, we should send them to the lab, and they dispose of them being an incinerator. It's the proper way to dispose of the drugs," he said. "Flushing them down the toilet can potentially contaminate the water system. You don't necessarily know who may be taking them out of the trash cans. Again, that could be an inadvertent way that you're putting drugs on the streets by just throwing them in your trash can."
Although there are two local take back events annually, people can also take most medications into most police departments 24 hours a day.
"I think getting the message out to the community is important, that drug addiction is a very real thing," Wisler said. "A lot of people that suffer from drug addiction started with pharmaceutical pills and a legitimate source. It's important to know that anyone that is suffering from drug addiction can reach out for help. Not only are the police willing to assist you, there are plenty of other programs that are available to assist people with their drug addiction."
Also, people can take in any kind of unused prescription medication, not just pain pills. Anyone who is experiencing addiction can call SAMHSA at 1-800-662-HELP (4357), the National Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The program will put people in contact with local substance abuse programs and is in both English and Spanish.
The next local take back day is in April 2025.