Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear is providing 800 drug deactivation packages to the Green River Area Development District as part of the state’s Opioid Disposal Program.
The district’s aging and social service department will dispense the packages to dispose up to 36,000 unused prescription opioids. Beshear said his office spoke with the district to determine how many opioids could be eliminated.
“We thought this was a good number to start with to try to get each of the medicine cabinets of the folks that come into the senior center cleaned out so they can protect their grandkids and make sure they don’t fall into addiction,” Beshear said. “And they can make it less likely for their home to be burglarized.”
The department aids senior citizens in Daviess, Hancock, Henderson, McLean, Ohio, Union and Webster counties. Beshear said the pilot program aims to reduce the nearly 80 percent of heroin users who begin their addiction with prescription drugs. He said his office is supporting a bill that requires any funds recovered from his lawsuits against drug companies be spent to address the epidemic.
“We’d hope that part of those recoveries would go towards funding a statewide version of this program.”
Beshear said the program has given out over 42,000 packages across the state.
