RALEIGH (AP) — Efforts to collect old prescription and over-the-counter drugs have produced a record for Operation Medicine Drop in North Carolina.
Attorney General Roy Cooper said more than 12 million doses were collected during last month’s campaign, breaking previous marks.
Operation Medicine Drop is designed to cut down on prescription drug abuse and environmental damage by encouraging people to properly dispose of old drugs that are no longer needed.
With around 80 percent of participating agencies reporting, the Pitt County Sheriff’s Office leads with 845,625 doses of prescription and over-the-counter drugs collected.
The attorney general’s office said there was a large increase in collection of Fentanyl patches, considered among the deadliest painkillers when abused.
Other interesting items include drugs prescribed in 1958 and packages of children’s medicines with directions written in Hindi.