In the Senate, Klobuchar worked to pass and implement bipartisan legislation to expand drug take-back programs 

National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day gives Minnesotans the opportunity to properly dispose of unused prescription drugs to avoid diversion, misuse, and abuse

WASHINGTON– U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) met with Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents in honor of the upcoming 15th National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day. Klobuchar is urging Minnesotans to participate in the event, which will be held from 10:00 am until 2:00 pm CDT on Saturday, April 28, to allow people across the country to properly dispose of unused prescription drugs to avoid diversion, misuse, and abuse. Minnesotans can participate by visiting their local collection site, which they can find on the DEA’s website HERE.

“Today, four out of five heroin users get their start misusing prescription painkillers – and so the very pills that are supposed to ease a person’s pain end up ruining their lives,” Klobuchar said. “The DEA’s Drug Take-Back Day is important to promote awareness about the opioid epidemic and help Minnesotans dispose of unneeded prescription drugs that are vulnerable to misuse and dangerous to children. I will continue to work with all those who share my commitment to combating prescription drug abuse on behalf of Minnesota families.”

As a former Hennepin County Attorney, Klobuchar has long led local and national efforts to curb drug abuse and help people overcome addiction. In September 2014, the DEA implemented Klobuchar’s bipartisan Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act. Under the legislation, consumers are provided with more safe and responsible ways to dispose of unused prescription medications and controlled substances. 

In February, Klobuchar and Senators Rob Portman (R-OH), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) introduced the bipartisan Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) 2.0 Act. The bill will increase the funding authorization levels for the CARA programs enacted in 2016 and put in place additional policy reforms to help combat the opioid epidemic.

To build on the monumental first step of CARA, Klobuchar introduced the Prescription Drug Monitoring Act, which would require the use of strong prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) in all states that receive certain federal funding to combat opioid abuse and also requires states to make their PDMP data available to other states.

Last year, she and ten other senators introduced the Budgeting for Opioid Addiction Treatment (LifeBOAT) Act, which would establish a reliable funding stream to provide and expand access to substance abuse treatment. She and a bipartisan group of senators also introduced the Synthetic Abuse and Labeling of Toxic Substances (SALTS) Act. The SALTS Act would make it easier to prosecute the sale of “analogue” drugs, which are synthetic substances that are substantially similar to illegal drugs.

Last year, Klobuchar and Senators Rob Portman (R-OH), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) introduced the bipartisan Synthetics Trafficking & Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act to help stop dangerous synthetic drugs like fentanyl and carfentanil from being shipped through our borders to drug traffickers in the United States.

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