(EL PASO COUNTY, Colo) — Within the neighborhood parks and typical Saturday activities, there were stands across Southern Colorado set up to collect prescription pills and opioids to prevent drug overdoses and accidental poisoning.
“It gives residents an opportunity to go through their unused or expired prescription drugs they may have accumulated in their homes over the years,” said Jennifer Lang from El Paso County Public Health.
Pills and bottles were dropped off, filling several kitchen-sized trash bags to the brim. The collection site near the Widefield Parks and Rec Center is a small part of a nationwide event where cities across the country set up drop-off points for old and expired prescription pills and opioids. The Widefield location offered medicine cases, Narcan, and other gifts in a bag in exchange for old pills.
Several other drop-off locations across El Paso County also saw trash bags fill up. In total, the Colorado Springs Police Department tells FOX21 that 1,373 pounds of prescription drugs and opioids were collected during April’s take-back event. Lang says the event has been successful for the past three years…