NEWARK – Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin, the New Jersey Coordinator for Addiction Responses and Enforcement Strategies (“NJ CARES”), and the Division of Consumer Affairs (“DCA”) are announcing that 80 hospice and long-term care facilities will receive drug disposal bags. The bags will provide the facilities with a safe and easy way to dispose of leftover medications, preventing opioids from being diverted or misused after they are no longer needed for a patient.
The bags were shipped out last week by Verde® Environmental Technologies, Inc., the maker of Deterra® Drug Deactivation System. Deterra® is a safe medication disposal pouch or container that can be used at home or in a clinical setting to destroy and properly dispose of unused, unwanted, and expired medications (i.e. pills, patches, liquids, creams, and films) by adding water.
“Ensuring the safe and quick disposal of leftover medication keeps opioids out of the wrong hands and reduces misuse and abuse,” said Attorney General Platkin. “By supplying hospice and long-term care facilities with drug disposal bags, we’re cutting down on the supply of diverted opioids, which in turn helps prevent overdoses and damage to our communities.”