Federal authorities say nearly 11,000 pounds of prescription drugs have been collected in Houston as part of a "drug take back day."
Wendell Campbell with the Drug Enforcement Agency told the Houston Chronicle the unwanted or unneeded drugs were collected Saturday at nearly 50 sites across the city.
Officials say prescription drug abuse has become a growing problem in recent years with the rise in use of OxyContin and Hydrocodone, two opioids widely prescribed for pain management.
Abuse of those drugs prompted drug manufacturers to reformulate them.
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that in 2010 nearly 60 percent of drug overdose deaths involved pharmaceutical drugs.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
