Riverton Introduces ‘Solution’ To Pill Disposal: NarcX
Sep 12, 2019, 1:16 PM
RIVERTON, Utah – Riverton City officials made a big announcement in the fight to end the opioid epidemic.
They’re making a new way of getting rid of prescription pills available — before those prescriptions have the opportunity to become an addiction.
“You take your pills, you pour it in, it goes instantaneously in the liquid solution,” said a former DEA agent who now works to educate the public on addiction and the benefits of NarcX. “Our chemical engineers right now could not go in and take those pills back out, and if someone tried to drink it, they would throw up. There’s zero abuse potential in it.”
So how does #narcX work to combat the #opioidcrisis? ….watch here simply dispose it. DEA, CFR & EPA compliant, Biodegradable & eco-friendly. @RivertonCity the first to team up in our state. @KSL5TV pic.twitter.com/meFmGXYmEJ
— Felicia Martinez (@FeliciaKSL) September 12, 2019
The NarcX solution is the only on-site disposal option compliant with the DEA. Once the pills are dumped into the solution, they become non-retrievable, meaning they cannot be taken back out and diverted into drugs again.
Mayor Trent Staggs announced the city is taking the fight against the opioid epidemic a step further by offering this new way of disposing narcotics and other prescription medications in the privacy of residents’ homes. The idea behind this new approach is to get rid of stockpiling old pills, which often lead to addiction.
Riverton has teamed up with the Utah Opioid Task Force, which includes the DEA and Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes.
Approximately 50 Utahns die each month due to opioids, and DEA Agent Brian Besser said it’s the power of local solutions that can make a difference.
He said people need to stop thinking it’s something that happens to others and start thinking of it as an issue that affects everyone.
“Until this becomes a community problem, we’re just treading water,” Besser said.
According to Salt Lake County officials, there were approximately 240 million pills prescribed over a six-year period. In 2018, there were more than 67,000 opioid-related deaths nationally, and more than 650 in Utah. The numbers surpassed deaths by car crashes and firearms.
One-thousand bottles of NarcX are already available at the Riverton Hospital Pharmacy for $5 each. Drop-off solution sites are also throughout Riverton, including the fire department, city hall and public works.
