The Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, in association with the U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), and the Office of Diversion Control is encouraging all Tennesseans to do their part to reduce the risk of prescription drug abuse.

On Saturday, April 30, in communities across the state, Tennesseans have the opportunity to take part in National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day which aims to provide a safe, convenient, and responsible means of disposing of prescription drugs from homes and offices.

"This is a chance for everyone to contribute, and become part of the solution to our state's prescription drug abuse epidemic that has hurt so many of our loved ones, friends, and neighbors," said E. Douglas Varney, Commissioner for the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. "Every person in our state has been touched by this epidemic, in one form or another. We have lost too many to this disease of addiction. If you have unused medications, do your part and join in Take-Back Day. Ask others to do the same."

In 2015, the Tennessee Department of Health released some very sobering statistics on the impact of substance use in Tennessee revealing: The number of Tennesseans who die each year due to drug overdoses increased again in 2014. The total number of overdose deaths rose by nearly 100, from 1,166 in 2013 to a record-setting 1,263 in 2014. If those numbers are hard to comprehend, consider this: more people died from drug overdoses in Tennessee last year than were killed in motor vehicle accidents.