Prescription Drug Abuse Campaign

About the Program

Category: Criminal Justice and Public Safety (Best in Category)

Year: 2009

The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office (MCAO) supports an alcohol and drug free environment for all the youth in the community. An important component of the drug prevention program is education. In 2008, MCAO launched a new prescription drugs campaign to deal with teens who may be abusing prescription stimulants, sedatives, and over-the-counter drugs. Five local mothers whose teenaged children died of prescription drug abuse told their stories in sometimes tearful, hard-hitting public service announcements that began airing on television. The public service announcements were created as a result of recent nationwide and statewide research indicating that the contents of people’s medicine cabinets can pose more of a threat than a meth dealer might pose. MCAO reviewed several studies and other research, finding that 20 percent of teens surveyed nationwide admit to abusing prescription drugs, while a lower 7 percent admit to abusing meth. It was reported and substantiated that teens too often abuse prescription drugs because they think they are safer than street drugs. Complementing the public service announcements were a series of local billboards aimed at communicating the dangers of prescription drugs. The PSA campaign was intended to address this rising trend and to supplement the new prescription drug material now included in the office’s handbook and website. Together, the public service announcements, the billboards, websites, and booklets provide much-needed education about the dangers of different prescription drugs to parents, children, teachers, and businesses.