• To announce that Prescription Drug Take-Back Day is on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2013, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at statewide collection sites;
• To discuss the tremendous importance of preventing prescription drug abuse, and what steps DHSS is taking to provide treatment information and access points on drug and alcohol addiction to Delawareans; and
• To announce the final recommendations of the Prescription Drug Action Committee (PDAC), which call for real-world, practical actions to address Delaware's prescription drug epidemic. Delaware ranked ninth in the country for the number of drug overdoses in 2009 (the most recent data we have available). And, of the drug overdoses in Delaware, 80 percent of them involve one or more prescription drugs. Mortality rates in which prescription drugs were implicated increased nearly four-fold between 1999 and 2009. For more on PDAC, visit at dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dph/pdachome.html .

• Secretary Rita Landgraf, Delaware Health and Social Services (DHSS)
• Secretary Lewis D. Schiliro, Delaware Department of Safety and Homeland Security
• Division Director Karyl Rattay, MD, Delaware Division of Public Health, DHSS
• Immediate Past President Randeep Kahlon, MD, Medical Society of Delaware
• atTAcK addiction, a nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing awareness on drug and alcohol addiction (invited)

The National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day event is on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2013 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. with collection sites located throughout Delaware. This event gives the public an opportunity to safely dispose of expired, unused and unwanted medications. Anyone can simply bring medications for disposal to any of the statewide collection sites listed below. Prescription and over-the-counter pills, liquids, and cream medications will be accepted - even pet medication. The service is free and anonymous. For more information on a collection site near you, visit: www.dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dph/hsp/healthyhomes.html