BY STACI WILSON
Susquehanna County District Attorney Robert Klein, along with community partners, spoke about the dangers of prescription medications in the effort to stem the tide of opioid addiction in the county. STAFF PHOTO/STACI WILSON
Susquehanna County District Attorney Robert Klein rolled out a second phase in the fight against drug abuse and addiction last week.
In a press conference held Thursday afternoon at the Endless Mountains Health Systems, Klein unveiled a mobile, drug collection vehicle.
Klein said Susquehanna County is ranked second in the state in opioid deaths per capita. Only Philadelphia is ranked higher.
The district attorney is moving forward in an effort to stem the opioid and heroin epidemic in the county – partnering with community organizations, health care providers and area businesses to put the mobile drug take back vehicle on the road.
“We don’t treat prescription drugs as the lethal weapons they can be,” Klein said.
He spoke about a person undergoing drug treatment who admitted to stealing prescriptions from the homes of friends and family. Any prescription over six months all, he would take the whole thing; prescriptions under six months old- he would take half, Klein
Susquehanna County’s new “Drop the Drugs” vehicle is a mobile unit that can be utilized by law enforcement personnel to collect unused or expired medications. The vehicle was unveiled as part of an awareness campaign about the dangers of prescription medications and opiate abuse. STAFF PHOTO/STACI WILSON
said.
“We’ve got to figure out a way to secure our medications they we do our guns,” Klein said.
On April 30, community members will get the chance to dispose of unused prescriptions with the National Drug Take Back Day. There will be locations throughout the county, including the county courthouse, where medications will be collected and safely disposed of.
“Our goal is to take back as many (medications) as possible,” Klein said.
The district attorney said, “The face of addiction is no longer that typical ‘burner.’ No group is immune to the opiate epidemic.”
In a meeting with local municipal leaders on Wednesday evening, hosted by the county Farm Bureau, Klein outlined the dangers of opiate addiction.
“When is reaches into the fabric of a community like ours, it’s an epidemic,” Klein said.
Klein advocated for the use of medication drop-box for unused or expired medicines – like the ones installed in the mobile unit. There are also secure drop boxes at the county courthouse and at the Forest City Borough building.
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