State Senator Andrew Chesney (R-Freeport) and Stephenson County Sheriff Steve Stovall are pleased to announce that 82 pounds of expired and unused medications were collected at a drug take-back event held in Lena over the weekend.
“There is a drug overdose epidemic in this country that demands our attention,” said Chesney. “For our drug take-back event, I partnered with Stephenson County Sheriff Steve Stovall and we helped the people of the 45th District safely dispose of their unused or expired medications. In all, we collected 82 pounds of drugs. That’s 82 pounds of pharmaceuticals that were kept out of the hands of potential abusers and it’s 82 pounds of drugs that did not leach into the water supply.”
The September 9 event was held at the Pearl City Elevator in Lena, and during the two-hour event, more than 60 cars flowed through the drop-off line to dispose of human and pet medications. Medications collected at the event will be safely destroyed by the Stephenson County Sheriff’s Office.
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), in 2022 there were just under 83,000 suspected deaths that were opioid-related. The number is up slightly from 2021. Sheriff Stovall says drug take-back events like the one held on September 9 are a good way for everyday Illinoisans to do their part to address the crisis.
“This was a great partnership, and I am pleased with the results of the drug take-back event,” said Stovall. “Drug abuse and deaths present a serious public safety and public health threat, and by encouraging people to remove unneeded and expired drugs from their homes we are helping to prevent drug misuse and addiction. We’re making our communities safer and reducing drug-related violence.”
Due to the success of the event, Senator Chesney said he will schedule additional drug take-back events in the future. Visit SenatorChesney.com for information about upcoming events.
