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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72"><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>Good go MN and JV!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>See attached AR’s take-back program snapshot of its overall results (gotta brag!).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>Very brief synopsis: “Including all ten DEA National Prescription Drug Take Back Initiative events: <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>o Arkansas ranked #3 nationally in pounds collected per person. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>o Despite being just thirty-second in population among all states, Arkansas ranked #15 in total weight collected. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>o 54 more law enforcement agencies participated in Arkansas than the national average. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>o Arkansas' average number of collection sites for each event was 162 - the national per state average was 108 per event.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>Allen Gilliam<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>ADEQ State Pretreatment Coordinator<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>501.682.0625<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'> Pharmwaste [mailto:pharmwaste-bounces@lists.dep.state.fl.us] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Volkman, Jennifer (MPCA)<br><b>Sent:</b> Thursday, April 14, 2016 6:11 PM<br><b>To:</b> pharmwaste@lists.dep.state.fl.us<br><b>Subject:</b> Re: [Pharmwaste] DURBIN & DUCKWORTH: PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY HAS A RESPONSIBILITY IN CURTAILING OPIOID OVERDOSE EPIDEMIC<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>I’m going to write those two a thank you note and include Minnesota’s collection data. We went from 81,000 to over 124,000 pounds collected from 2014 to 2015 with very few new collection locations.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'> Pharmwaste [<a href="mailto:pharmwaste-bounces@lists.dep.state.fl.us">mailto:pharmwaste-bounces@lists.dep.state.fl.us</a>] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Scott Cassel<br><b>Sent:</b> Thursday, April 14, 2016 6:01 PM<br><b>To:</b> <a href="mailto:pharmwaste@lists.dep.state.fl.us">pharmwaste@lists.dep.state.fl.us</a><br><b>Subject:</b> [Pharmwaste] DURBIN & DUCKWORTH: PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY HAS A RESPONSIBILITY IN CURTAILING OPIOID OVERDOSE EPIDEMIC<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;text-autospace:ideograph-other'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><img border=0 width=619 height=121 id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image001.png@01D1971F.D1CC42E0" alt="Durbin Press Release Masthead"></span><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:ideograph-other'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>For Immediate Release<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:ideograph-other'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>April 14, 2016 <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;text-autospace:none'><b><span style='font-size:16.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>DURBIN & DUCKWORTH: PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY HAS A RESPONSIBILITY IN CURTAILING OPIOID OVERDOSE EPIDEMIC<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;text-autospace:none'><b><i><span style='font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Illinois members of Congress say programs to dispose of leftover drugs – common in other countries – should be financial priority for pharmaceutical industry<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;text-autospace:none'><b><i><span style='font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today called on the President and CEO of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) to take financial responsibility for the industry’s role in curtailing the opioid overdose epidemic as other major companies have done. Early this year, Illinois-based Walgreens announced that it will install safe medication disposal kiosks in more than 500 of their drugstores to help in this effort.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Durbin and Duckworth noted that other countries and some large counties in the U.S. have extended producer responsibility programs which help ensure that pharmaceutical companies are legally held accountable for the environmental and social impacts of their drugs throughout the lifecycle – including drug take-back and responsible disposal. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>“Solving this opioid overdose crisis will not be easy. It will require a comprehensive solution involving stakeholders in both the public and private sectors, and we have already seen commitments from medical schools, pharmacies, and law enforcement,” Durbin and Duckworth wrote. “As an organization that shares in the responsibility for dealing with this problem, we write today to enlist your help in tackling one component of this crisis: getting leftover and unused medications off the street and out of our medicine cabinets.”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), opioids – including prescription opioid pain relievers and heroin – killed more than 28,000 people in 2014. Four out of five new heroin users started out by misusing prescription opioids. One way to help combat misuse of prescription opioids is to get unused medications out of people’s homes where they are prone to misuse, abuse, and diversion. Drug “take-back programs” can be especially helpful in providing a secure locations for people to dispose of their unused pills. However, voluntary initiatives to establish these collection receptacles for disposal have been minimal to date, largely because of cost. This is where the pharmaceutical industry can, and should, help. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>In 2012, health care providers wrote 259 million prescriptions for painkillers—or more than one painkiller prescription for every single adult living in our country. On September 26, 2015, the DEA hosted a take-back day that collected more than 702,365 pounds—351 tons—of unused, expired, or unwanted drugs across the United States. In response to the sheer volume of unused and dangerous painkillers in U.S. households, several major counties, including Alameda County, California, and King County, Washington, have passed ordinances to require pharmaceutical manufacturers to underwrite and/or manage drug take-back programs.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Text of today’s letter is below.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:2.5in;text-indent:.5in;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>April 14, 2016<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Steve Ubl<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>President and CEO<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>950 F Street, NW, Suite 300<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Washington, DC 20004<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Dear Mr. Ubl:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Our nation is in the midst of an opioid overdose epidemic. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), opioids – including prescription opioid pain relievers and heroin – killed more than 28,000 people in 2014. Four out of five new heroin users started out by misusing prescription opioids. Solving this opioid overdose crisis will not be easy. It will require a comprehensive solution involving stakeholders in both the public and private sectors, and we have already seen commitments from medical schools, pharmacies, and law enforcement. As an organization that shares in the responsibility for dealing with this problem, we write today to enlist your help in tackling one component of this crisis: getting leftover and unused medications off the street and out of our medicine cabinets.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>In September 2014, the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) finalized regulations to expand the disposal options for controlled substances by allowing authorized entities to maintain collection receptacles. Beginning in October 2014, authorized manufacturers, distributors, reverse distributors, narcotic treatment programs, hospitals and clinics with an on-site pharmacy, and retail pharmacies could voluntarily establish “take-back programs” that include disposal kiosks. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>However, voluntary initiatives to establish these collection receptacles has been minimal to date. An October 2015 <i>New York Times</i> article noted that “only about 1 percent of American pharmacies have set up disposal programs.” The primary obstacle in expanding such voluntary programs among pharmacies are the cost concerns around security, storage, transportation, and disposal. We see this as a unique opportunity for the pharmaceutical industry to financially support these programs and to be part of the solution.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>In 2012, health care providers wrote 259 million prescriptions for painkillers—or more than one painkiller prescription for every single adult living in our country. On September 26, 2015, the DEA hosted a take-back day that collected more than 702,365 pounds—351 tons—of unused, expired, or unwanted drugs across the United States. In light of the infrequency of these annual events and the sheer volume of prescription drugs being prescribed by physicians, more must be done to reduce the excess number of pills that end up in household medicine cabinets, where they are a potent threat for misuse and abuse. This is why we believe your member companies have a financial responsibility to help establish and oversee programs to dispose of these leftover drugs.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>There is precedence for such involvement on the part of the pharmaceutical industry. Several major United States counties, including Alameda County, California, and King County, Washington, have passed ordinances to require pharmaceutical manufacturers to underwrite and/or manage drug take-back programs. In Canada, Mexico, and many European countries, pharmaceutical companies also have extended producer responsibility (EPR), in which they are legally held accountable for the environmental and social impacts of the product throughout its lifecycle, including drug take-back and responsible disposal. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>We believe that such EPR programs have merit and should strongly be considered in the face of the ongoing prescription opioid crisis. While there are numerous aspects of this complicated epidemic, we support and encourage concrete stewardship actions by pharmaceutical companies to be a part of the solution by providing financial and environmental support for the lifecycle of their products. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>We look forward to your immediate consideration. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:2.0in;text-indent:.5in;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Sincerely, <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-indent:.5in;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-indent:.5in;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>___________________________ ___________________________<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>Richard J. Durbin Tammy Duckworth<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>United States Senator United States Representative<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;text-autospace:none'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>-30-<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Consolas'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:navy'>____________________________</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'><br><b>Scott Cassel<o:p></o:p></b></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'>Chief<b> </b>Executive Officer/Founder<br><i>Product Stewardship Institute, Inc.</i><br>29 Stanhope Street, Boston, MA 02116<br>617-236-4822 (ph); 617-236-4766 (fax) <br></span><span style='color:black'><a href="mailto:scott@productstewardship.us"><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:blue'>scott@productstewardship.us</span></a> <br><a href="http://www.productstewardship.us/"><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:blue'>www.productstewardship.us</span></a></span><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black'><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class=MsoNormal><span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:18.0pt;font-family:Webdings;color:green'>P </span><b><span style='color:gray'>Click to follow us on </span></b><span style='color:#1F497D'><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Product-Stewardship-Institute/224328115936?ref=ts"><b><span style='color:#4F81BD'>Facebook</span></b></a></span><b><span style='color:gray'> and </span></b><span style='color:#1F497D'><a href="http://twitter.com/productsteward"><b><span style='color:#4F81BD'>Twitter</span></b></a> </span><b><span style='color:gray'>and</span></b><span style='color:#1F497D'> </span><b><span style='color:#4F81BD'><a href="http://productstewardshipinstitute.wordpress.com/"><span style='color:#4F81BD'>Blog</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div></body></html>