Wood County Prevention Coalition
Uniting For A Drug-Free Community Since 2004
Bowling Green, OH Police Division Drug Take-Back Initiative
The Wood County Hospital, The Wood County Alcohol, Drug and Mental Health Services Board, The Wood County Sheriff’s Office and the Bowling Green Police Division partnered to provide the public the ongoing opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted pharmaceutical drugs. Materials will be collected by Bowling Green Police Division and Wood County Sheriff’s Office personnel. The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.
Due to restrictions on processes of disposal, receiving representatives cannot accept liquids, plastics, glass, bio-hazards, radioactive waste, syringes, drug paraphernalia or other medical waste.
This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S.are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs. Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet. In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash both pose potential safety and health hazards.
Secure drop boxes are located in the lobby area on the first floor of the Bowling Green Police Division at 175 West Wooster Street and in the lobby area of the Wood County Sheriff’s Office at 1960 East Gypsy Lane Road. The drop boxes will be accessible to the public via access to the lobby area and will remain under continuous video surveillance. When citizens utilize the drop boxes to turn in pharmaceuticals, no documentation is required by the citizen or by agency personnel. Destruction of materials will follow normal Bowling Green Police Division procedures.
To view a map of drop boxes in Wood County: http://www.bowlinggreenpolice.org/?page_id=678
For a list of drop boxes throughout the state of Ohio click here: http://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/Individuals-and-Families/Victims/Drug-Diversion/Drug-Disposal/Prescription-Drug-Drop-Boxes
Podcast #30: Coalition Talk with Brittany Sandidge
After the January 29th coalition meeting, we discussed what it means to be a coalition, a coalition's ability to organize and respond to community issue, awareness and advocacy efforts for local problems, and the importance of celebrating success. Brittany also takes about the many challenges coalitions face with resources, conflicting priorities, having difficult conversations and the struggle to find common ground and much more! To listen to this episode, click here: http://www.podcastgarden.com/episode/brittany-sandidge_70207
or for iTunes listeners: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/wood-county-prevention-coalition/id1042306157?mt=2&i=362503059
To contact Brittany, call (614) 540-9985 or email bsandidge@drugfreeactionalliance.org
To learn more about the Statewide Prevention Coalition Association (SPCA), click here: https://www.drugfreeactionalliance.org/occe_spca
The next SPCA meeting is Tuesday, March 15th, 2016 in Westerville, OH from 10am to 2pm. For coalition members interested in attending, contact Milan Karna at mkarna@wcesc.org
G.A.P Summit Network Summit is February 26-27, 2016. For more information and registration, click here: https://www.drugfreeactionalliance.org/gap-network-conference
2016 Ohio Problem Gambling Conference is March 3rd and 4th. For more information and registration, click here: https://www.drugfreeactionalliance.org/calendar/event/192
Substance Abuse Prevention Skills Training is March 14-17, 2016. For more information and registration, click here: https://www.drugfreeactionalliance.org/calendar/event/191
Ohio medical marijuana measure would be written by industry
By Jackie Borchardt, cleveland.com
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Another investor-backed plan to legalize marijuana in Ohio is in the works. This time, the business owners are focusing on medical marijuana.
The proposed constitutional amendment -- separate from a medical marijuana push by the advocacy group Marijuana Policy Project -- would be written by marijuana business owners and industry professionals who contribute $25 million to the effort, according to a prospectus obtained by cleveland.com. The "industry-funded table" would also "call the shots" and "stand to reap the benefit of successful passage."
Sound familiar?
The recreational marijuana legalization measure on last year's ballot, Issue 3, would have issued the only 10 commercial growing licenses to investors who raised $25 million for the campaign. The "monopoly" aspect of the plan prompted opposition, including an anti-monopoly constitutional amendment, from across the state.
Ohioans overwhelmingly rejected the measure, but polls showed as many as 9 in 10 Ohioans support marijuana use to treat medical conditions. Marijuana Policy Project announced last month it would pursue a medical-only constitutional amendment this year. The national advocacy organization has led or aided in legalization efforts in dozens of states.
Previous coverage: Marijuana Policy Project
But a group of consultants calling itself ARC Reaction says activist-driven legislation has produced mixed results for the industry. ARC Reaction says it will have a better alternative for "industry players wanting to take a shot at owning a critical Midwestern market," according to the prospectus being circulated to out-of-state investors.
Who is ARC Reaction? Leading the effort are three Colorado lobbyists: Gray McGinnis, Collon Kennedy, and Phillip Hayes. Their proposed campaign team includes Washington state-based firm Kully, Hall, and Struble, which created advertisements for Washington's successful 2012 recreational marijuana initiative campaign.
To read the remaining portion of the article, click here: http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2016/02/ohio_medical_marijuana_measure.html
Legislation would provide comprehensive addiction treatment, prevention
From: www.thenews-messenger.com
FREMONT - Battling the largest number of opiate-related deaths in Ohio history, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, revealed plans Wednesday to introduce comprehensive legislation providing crisis-to-recovery treatment for addicts and families both locally and statewide.
In a conference call with the media Wednesday, Brown announced his planned legislation called Heroin and Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention and Reduction Act — a plan to expand treatment, boost recovery options and provide lifelong support for recovery.
"The bill would provide funding for first responders and medical professionals and provide and make Naloxone more affordable to the communities that need it most. It would expand access to treatment we know works," Brown said.
Juni Johnson, director of Paint Valley Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services Board, located in Chillicothe, said Brown's legislation would allow for flexibility when dealing with all stages of addiction.
"It helps us to address addiction on many fronts including prevention in schools, crisis services and evidence-based treatment," Johnson said. "There's a whole continuum of care and we need to employ all resources from prevention to medical-assisted therapy. There is not one system that is a fix-all. It needs to be flexible and I think this bill goes really far in doing that."
Johnson said evidence-based treatment, or treatments that have been proven to work, provide detailed outlines for helping addicts to recover. Unlike many traditional methods of treatment, Johnson said evidence-based strategies delve deeper into the real issues of drug addiction.
"Say you have a speaker come into the classroom and they give a gruesome account of their addiction and by age 24 they were in recovery and everything is great and what the kids hold onto is 'Gee, it's not that bad. They're 24 and fine so I'm going to keep doing what I am doing,'" Johnson said. "Evidenced-based is delivered over a longer period of time and follows a specific curriculum."
Brown said the best way to reduce the epidemic in Ohio is by providing education and promoting prevention before the problem starts, in addition to aiding those recovering from addiction.
"It's afflicting thousands," Brown said. "It shouldn't be easier for Ohioans to get their hands on opioids than to help treat their addiction."
Since becoming senator in 2007, Brown said he has held more than 200 round-table discussions and has met with families, doctors and health professionals. The best way to treat addiction, he said, is through treatment and education, which his legislation is designed to cover.
Overdose deaths from heroin and opioids across the state are on the rise as 2,110 people died from overdoses in 2013 and a state record 2,482 people died in 2014. Numbers for 2015 are not yet available.
The 18.3 percent increase in overall drug deaths from 2013 to 2014 contributed to Ohio being second in the nation to California in drug overdoses, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention.
The state has been aggressive in combating overdoses in recent years, from limiting the amount of dangerous prescriptions doctors can prescribe to introducing Naloxone, an injection drug that can be used to revive opiate overdose victims.
Sandusky County is among the counties where the epidemic has been growing. Naloxone use by Sandusky County EMS personnel increased from 33 doses administered in 2014 to 38 in 2015, according to Sandusky County EMS director Jeff Jackson.
Efforts to make Naloxone available to the public for emergency use was given a boost last week when CVS Health announced that all of its Ohio pharmacies will make Narcan — a brand name under which Naloxone is sold — available without prescriptions starting in late March. A package of two doses will cost between $40 and $50, according Erin Britt, director of corporate communications for CVS Health.
The CDC has reported that many opiate abuse cases begin when someone becomes addicted to pain medication that was prescribed after surgery. Ohio was one 16 states to receive CDC money to evaluate policies and guidelines for prescribing opioid pain killers.
Along with education, resources, and treatment, Brown's proposed bill will allow for loan forgiveness to those seeking careers in substance abuse disorders, something Johnson said could be a game-changer for making a difference in the opiate addiction battle.
Johnson said recruiting staff has been a struggle in Chillicothe.
"If they can get loans repaid or get paid better, this bill will be a really big help," she said.
U.S. Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, is also working on legislation geared towards education and law enforcement to combat the drug epidemic.
Portman's proposal would include expanding the availability of Narcan to law-enforcement agencies and monitoring and tracking prescription drug programs.
Brown said Portman has worked hard on his bill and that he would likely vote for it.
"I'm hopeful as this (bill) works its way through the process that it could be combined with something more comprehensive that deals with law enforcement and treatment," Brown said.
Wood County Prevention Coalition Meeting
Friday, May 13, 2016, 08:30 AM
Wood County Educational Service Center 1867 N Research Drive, Bowling Green, OH, United States
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
About Us
Our Vision: Helping youth be drug-free, productive and responsible citizens.
Our Mission: We are a coalition of compassionate community members working together to coordinate high quality programs for the prevention of youth substance abuse in Wood County.
Email: mkarna@wcesc.org
Website: wcprevention.org
Location: 1867 Research Drive, Bowling Green, OH, United States
Phone: (419)-354-9010
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WCPCoalition
Twitter: @woodpccoalition