WHEREAS, More deaths were caused by drug overdoses in 2010 than traffic accidents among people 25 to 64 years of age; and

WHEREAS, In 2010, drug overdoses in the United States resulted in 38,329 deaths, of which 22,134 were from prescription drugs; and

WHEREAS, In 2011, an estimated 22.5 million Americans who are 12 years of age or older indicated in response to a survey that they had used an illicit drug or abused a prescription drug in the previous month; and

WHEREAS, In 2009, 1.2 million emergency department visits were related to misuse or abuse of pharmaceuticals, which is an increase of 98.4 percent from 2004; and

WHEREAS, Overdose deaths involving opioid pain relievers now exceed deaths caused by heroin and cocaine combined; and

WHEREAS, As many as 70 percent of people who abuse prescription drugs get them from a relative or friend instead of a doctor; and

WHEREAS, The 2013 National Drug Control Strategy listed four interventions to reduce prescription drug abuse, one of which is to provide safe drug disposal by increasing the number of take-back programs to consumers or for disposal at hazardous waste facilities; and

WHEREAS, During the last seven of the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Days operated by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), a total of 3.4 million pounds of medication were removed from circulation and potential diversion by the DEA and its state, local, and tribal law enforcement and community partners; and

WHEREAS, The Legislature supports April 26, 2014, as National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day as declared by the DEA, which encourages residents to locate their local collection site and safely dispose of their accumulated unwanted and unused prescription drugs; and

WHEREAS, The National Coalition Against Prescription Drug Abuse (NCAPDA) was established to help reduce the number of deaths and addictions caused by prescription drug abuse, through implementing a nationwide awareness campaign, initiating and supporting pertinent legislative actions, and through partnerships with educational, medical, law enforcement, and other appropriate entities; and

WHEREAS, NCAPDA links existing community-based entities throughout the United States under NCAPDA to share best practices, develop and share useful material resources, and establish and implement a cohesive, nationwide awareness campaign regarding the dangers of prescription drug abuse; and

WHEREAS, Families, schools, businesses, faith-based communities, law enforcement, medical professionals, county and local governments, health care practitioners, pharmacists, and the general public will demonstrate their commitment to the prevention of prescription medication abuse by participating in activities intended to highlight local efforts during the month of March; now, therefore, be it