'Drug Take Back Day' to be held Saturday

Do you have unused or expired prescription drugs in your home? Saturday, you'll have an opportunity to discard them safely as part of National Prescription Drug Take Back Day.

In Henrico and nearby, take-back locations will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at:

• Eastern Henrico Recreation Center (1440 N. Laburnum Ave.);

• Henrico Training Center (7721 E. Parham Rd. –- entrance on Shrader Rd.);

• Varina Public Library, 1875 New Market Rd.;

• Virginia State Police site (9300 Brook Rd.);

• Goochland County Sheriff's Office site at West Creek Emergency Center (12720 Tuckahoe Creek Pkwy.);

• Hanover County Sheriff's Office site at Mechanicsville Convenience Center (7427 Verdi Lane in Mechanicsville).

The event is designed to safely dispose of medications – especially prescription opioids – before they can be misused, abused or accidentally ingested.

There is a strong link between misuse of prescription opioids, opioid addiction and even subsequent use of heroin once prescriptions become too expensive or are no longer accessible. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, heroin abuse is 19 times more likely among those who abuse prescription opioids, and half of young people who use heroin got started by abusing prescription opioids.

In Virginia, opioid overdose deaths have risen steadily since 2010, with heroin overdoes deaths up more than 1,060 percent between 2010 and 2015 and fentanyl deaths up by more than 1,500 percent from 2007 to 2017.

Law enforcement agencies, community partners, and members of the Attorney General's team will be stationed at dozens of locations throughout the state to accept medications for proper disposal.

For details, including a complete list of Take Back sites, visit http://deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback/index.html.