[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5278]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                NATIONAL PRESCRIPTION DRUG TAKE-BACK DAY

  (Mr. CARTER of Georgia asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. CARTER of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize 
Saturday, April 30, as National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day.
  In the 30 years I served as a community pharmacist before my election 
to Congress, I saw prescription medications save lives. However, at the 
same time, I watched people's addiction to those same medications ruin 
careers, families, and lives.
  Today, 44 people in the U.S. die every day from prescription 
painkillers and overdoses. Overdoses are now the leading cause of 
accidental death in the U.S., exceeding even car accidents.
  Prescription medications have become the target of theft and abuse. 
It is critical we are all playing our part in combating the 
prescription drug abuse epidemic by safely disposing of unused 
medications.
  On Saturday, across the country, the DEA will host collection sites 
where Americans can drop off their pills and other solid, unused 
prescription drugs. In the First Congressional District of Georgia, I 
am proud to say that 12 military and law enforcement organizations will 
be hosting collection sites.
  To find a collection site near you, visit www.dea.gov, and click on 
the ``Got Drugs?'' icon. The service is free, with no questions asked.
  Together, we can end this epidemic plaguing our Nation, and I 
encourage everyone to take part in this event.

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