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Sean D. Reyes
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Utah! Take back your unused drugs on April 27th

Friday, April 19, 2019

The Utah Attorney General’s office encourages Utahns to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs.

Utah Take Back, sponsored by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, provides the opportunity to dispose of unused prescriptions on Saturday, April 27, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at locations statewide.

Find a take-back site near you at www.utahtakeback.org.

The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked. Additionally, eco-friendly reclamation bags donated at no cost to the state will be available for distribution from take-back locations.

The following items can be returned:

  • prescription medicines;
  • over the counter medicines;
  • vitamins;
  • pet medication;
  • medicated ointments and lotions;
  • inhalers;
  • liquid medicines in glass or leak-proof containers (up to 12 oz); and
  • medicine samples.

The following items are not returnable:

  • needles, lancets, or syringes;
  • thermometers;
  • aerosol cans;
  • empty containers;
  • bloody or infectious waste;
  • personal care products (i.e. non-medicated shampoo);
  • hydrogen peroxide; and
  • business waste.

For advice on the safe disposal of these items, contact your pharmacist, local health department, or call 1-800-RECYCLE (1-800-732-9235).

Utah opioid overdose deaths are down, thanks to Utah Naloxone

Part of the Utah Opioid Task Force, co-chaired by Attorney General Sean D. Reyes along with U.S. Senator Mike Lee and DEA District Agent-in-Charge Brian Besser, Utah Naloxone is a game-changer in the fight against opioids in the State of Utah. The Utah Attorney General’s office is proud of the work Utah Naloxone co-founder, Dr. Jennifer Plumb, has accomplished and is privileged to partner with her and her organization as we address the opioid epidemic in our great state.

For Immediate Release

UTAH NALOXONE REACHES MAJOR MILESTONE

SALT LAKE CITY – More than 3,000 people in Utah have a second chance at life thanks to the efforts of Utah Naloxone. All of these individuals were given the medication naloxone (Narcan) during an opioid overdose by a non-medical layperson around them. Naloxone reverses an opioid overdose if given in time, causing the effects of the opioid to reverse and bringing them back. Opioids include pain pills, heroin, and fentanyl.

All of these life-saving doses were administered by non-medical members of our community who obtained rescue kits from Utah Naloxone or one of its Overdose Outreach Provider partners just for this purpose. The recent reports bringing us to this milestone came from our partners at One Voice
Recovery (OVR) who work across the state of Utah to educate on substance use disorder, work to decrease stigma, as well as to reduce infectious disease transmission and overdose deaths. These direct community partners are a major contributor to saving lives across Utah.

The number of lives saved by naloxone has been attributed as a large part of why Utah is seeing a decline in the number of opioid deaths. We were one of only seven states in 2017 where the death rate is going down. And as the number of people who are surviving an opioid overdose and making it to an emergency room for care is rising – almost doubling from 2015 to 2017 (1.5/10,000 in 2015 to 2.8/10,000 in 2017). People are saving lives and giving people a chance to survive to make it to an ER which alters outcomes for our state.

There is still work to be done. Overdose is still the leading cause of injury death in the state, and Utah still is among states with a high rate of overdose deaths. If you or someone you know is taking opioids you should have Naloxone on hand in case of an overdose. Naloxone kits are available through Utah Naloxone. It is legal to possess the drug, and legal to administer it if you suspect someone is overdosing on opioids. For more information go to UtahNaloxone.org.

CONTACTS:
Jennifer Plumb, MD, MPH
Medical Director, Utah Naloxone
801-232-5410 801-696-1139
UtahNaloxone@gmail.com

Patrick Rezac
Executive Director, One Voice Recovery
801-696-1139
OneVoiceRecovery@gmail.com


Yesterday, Utah Attorney General’s office Special Agents and staff were trained on how to administer Naloxone in the field by Dr. Jennifer Plumb. Check out the photos below:

Opioids & Rural America

November 1, 2018

While Utah has experienced a drop in opioid-related overdose deaths, the rate of overdose deaths across America continues to rise. 

What may be surprising is where in America those rates occur. Long perceived as an urban issue, rural communities are now experiencing overdose deaths at a higher rate than their urban neighbors.*

Civil Eats, a daily news source for critical thought about the American food systems, addresses the farm communities that are especially hard hit by the opioid addiction. In their recent article, Reckoning with Opioids in Farm Country, Randy Parker, Utah State Director for USDA Rural Development is featured for his work on tackling the opioid issue in rural Utah. Attorney General Sean Reyes is also highlighted for his work in the creation of a rural opioid task force, which Parker chairs, to focus efforts on providing prevention, treatment, and recovery for those who live in rural areas. 

Here’s a look at a couple opioid roundtables in rural Utah.

You can learn more about opioid misuse in Rural America here and see how the USDA is responding in the following video (courtesy of USDA.gov)

 

*CDC Reports Rising Rates of Drug Overdose Deaths in Rural Areas

Photo by Timothy Eberly