PA Opens New Front In War Against Opioid Addiction
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Pennsylvania is opening up a new front in the battle against opioid addiction. Lawmakers and law enforcement in the state believe it is time to take more action to save lives.
City and state officials are trying to tackle the rising opioid addiction crisis.
Blue boxes being placed throughout Philadelphia could wind up saving lives. You'll see more and more of them popping up in Philadelphia Police districts.
"This saves lives," said District Attonery Seth Williams. He is expanded the office's prescription drug drop-off program which began in January.
They've already collected more than 200 pounds of unwanted, or unneeded, prescription drugs. Now, you can find the MedReturn boxes in 13 police districts throughout the city. The locations allow anyone to safely and anonymously dispose of prescription drugs.
"We want people to get the medicines out of their home so they don't fall into the wrong hands," Williams said. Philadelphia has the highest drug overdose rates in the state. In 2014, there were more than 650 overdose deaths in the city and of those, approximately half had prescription drugs or heroin in their system.
Governor Tom Wolf was in Philadelphia to announce the request of millions to address the rising crisis.
"We don't have enough treatment centers," Wolf said. He says the money will help to fund 50 outpatient treatment centers across Pennsylvania and would serve up to 11,000 people each year.
Williams said the goal is to expand those MedReturn boxes to every police district in Philadelphia.
