The family medicine cabinet is quickly turning into a top source for drug abusers -- as teens and others swipe unused or forgotten medications for recreational purposes. The Minnesota Poison Control System reported 2,613 overdoses last year that involved intentional misuse or abuse of prescription drugs. One in four involved teens (ages 13 to 19). That figure represents a 64 percent increase from the number of reported overdoses in 2005. One solution is coming from the Hennepin County Sheriff's Department, which is holding events in Brooklyn Center April 30 and Richfield June 2 at which people can dispose of old or unused prescription medications. "The abuse of prescription drugs is one of the fastest-growing problems we're seeing in terms of narcotics, really simply because they're easy to get," said Hennepin County Sheriff Rick Stanek. "All you've got to do is go to your parents' medicine cabinet."

Teens might be more inclined to take excessive amounts of prescription medications or mix them with alcohol, because they are legal and, in their minds, supposedly safe, Stanek said. Instead of flushing unused drugs down the toilet – which can pollute water supplies – the county is encouraging people to bring medications in their original packaging (if possible) and in clear plastic bags. The April 30 event takes place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Brooklyn Center City Hall. While the drive-through disposal events are free and relatively simple for people with unused medications, they are somewhat complicated affairs for the county. The sheriff is handling the events in part because of the security risk of having so many unused narcotics in one place. Stanek said drugs are becoming a top choice for household thieves as it is. "They leave the TV sets, the guns and money, but they take the prescription meds," he said. Volunteers from North Memorial Medical Center will sort out disposed over-the-counter drugs from prescription painkillers and other narcotics, because the disposal of controlled substances is more expensive. The sheriff held a similar event in St. Louis Park last fall. The event yielded 1,740 pounds of medications.