<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=us-ascii"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 15"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 15"><link rel="File-List" href="cid:filelist.xml@01D5C07D.69E9C270"><style><!--
/* Font Definitions */
@font-face
{font-family:Calibri;
panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4;
mso-font-charset:0;
mso-generic-font-family:swiss;
mso-font-pitch:variable;
mso-font-signature:-536859905 -1073732485 9 0 511 0;}
@font-face
{font-family:CNN;
mso-font-alt:"Times New Roman";
mso-font-charset:0;
mso-generic-font-family:auto;
mso-font-pitch:auto;
mso-font-signature:0 0 0 0 0 0;}
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{mso-style-unhide:no;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";}
a:link, span.MsoHyperlink
{mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
color:#0563C1;
text-decoration:underline;
text-underline:single;}
a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed
{mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
color:#954F72;
text-decoration:underline;
text-underline:single;}
span.EmailStyle17
{mso-style-type:personal-compose;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-unhide:no;
mso-ansi-font-size:12.0pt;
mso-bidi-font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;
mso-ascii-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
color:#0000CC;}
span.SpellE
{mso-style-name:"";
mso-spl-e:yes;}
.MsoChpDefault
{mso-style-type:export-only;
mso-default-props:yes;
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";}
@page WordSection1
{size:8.5in 11.0in;
margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in;
mso-header-margin:.5in;
mso-footer-margin:.5in;
mso-paper-source:0;}
div.WordSection1
{page:WordSection1;}
--></style></head><body lang="EN-US" link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72" style="tab-interval:.5in"><div class="WordSection1"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:3.75pt;margin-left:0in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#262626">It’s surprising, and concerning that pharmacies are still giving out incorrect information.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>We still have work to do.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:3.75pt;margin-left:0in"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#262626"> </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:3.75pt;margin-left:0in"><b><span style="font-size:16.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626">Not sure how to get rid of extra opioids or antibiotics? The pharmacy may not know, either</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt;vertical-align:middle"><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626">By Shelby Lin Erdman, CNN</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right:3.75pt;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0in;vertical-align:middle"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626">Updated 6:35 PM ET, Tue December 31, 2019 </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:11.25pt"><b><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>(CNN)</span></b><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626">When it comes to getting rid of prescription drugs, fewer than half of the pharmacies surveyed for a new study gave accurate guidance that met US Food and Drug Administration standards for disposing of unused opioids and antibiotics.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626">Researchers from<a href="https://www.ucsf.edu/news" target="_blank"><span style="color:#006598;text-decoration:none"> the University of California at San Francisco </span></a>surveyed nearly 900 California pharmacies by phone over a two-month period in 2018 during the week and on weekends. For the study, published Monday in the journal <a href="https://annals.org/aim" target="_blank"><span style="color:#006598;text-decoration:none">Annals of Internal Medicine</span></a>, researchers posed as parents with leftover opioids and antibiotics from a child's surgery.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626">They were looking for correct drug disposal instructions based on <a href="https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/where-and-how-dispose-unused-medicines" target="_blank"><span style="color:#006598;text-decoration:none">US Food and Drug Administration guidelines</span></a>. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626">The agency recommends taking unused medications to drug disposal or takeback programs as the best way of getting rid of unused or unwanted drugs. If a disposal program is not available, the agency suggests mixing antibiotics with coffee grinds or kitty litter, sealing the mixture in a container and throwing it in the garbage. <span style="background:yellow">It recommends flushing opioids</span>.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626">Researchers found only 47% of pharmacies gave correct instructions on how to dispose of antibiotics and 34% provided correct information about opioid disposal. On weekends, only 15% correctly directed customers about safe antibiotic disposal and 7% gave the correct information about disposing of opioids.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626">When asked about takeback programs at the 898 pharmacies, 91 said they had a program for antibiotic disposal and 82 said they had a program for opioid disposal.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626">"This clearly points to the need for better dissemination of information on proper medication disposal," Hillary <span class="SpellE">Copp</span>, senior study author and associate professor of urology at UCSF, said in a statement. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626">"The <a href="https://www.fda.gov/drugs/safe-disposal-medicines/disposal-unused-medicines-what-you-should-know" target="_blank"><span style="color:#006598;text-decoration:none">FDA has specific instructions</span></a> on how to dispose of these medications, and the American Pharmacists Association has adopted this as their standard. Yet it's not being given to the consumer correctly the majority of the time," <span class="SpellE">Copp</span> said.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:CNN;color:#262626">The improper disposal of medication can result in antibiotic resistance, pollution, child and pet poisonings and drug misuse.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#0000cc"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#0000cc"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#0000cc">Deborah L. DeBiasi<br><b>Email: <a href="mailto:Deborah.DeBiasi@deq.virginia.gov">Deborah.DeBiasi@deq.virginia.gov</a><i><br></i></b>WEB site address: <a href="http://www.deq.virginia.gov/" target="_blank"><span style="color:#0000cc">www.deq.virginia.gov</span></a><br>Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Water Permits <br>State Coordinator for Industrial Pretreatment/Whole Effluent Toxicity (WET) Programs<br>PPCPs, EDCs, and Microconstituents</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#222222"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#0000cc"><a href="http://www.deq.virginia.gov/Programs/Water/PermittingCompliance/PollutionDischargeElimination/Microconstituents.aspx" target="_blank"><span style="color:#0000cc">http://www.deq.virginia.gov/Programs/Water/PermittingCompliance/PollutionDischargeElimination/Microconstituents.aspx</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#222222"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#0000cc"><a href="http://www.deq.virginia.gov/DentalRule.aspx" target="_blank"><span style="color:#0000cc">http://www.deq.virginia.gov/DentalRule.aspx</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#222222"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#0000cc">Mail: P.O. Box 1105, Richmond, VA 23218<br>Location: 1111 E. Main Street, Suite 1400 Richmond, VA 23219<br>PH: 804-698-4028</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#222222"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"> </p></div></body></html>