New Film Shows Dangers of Prescription Drugs
A new short film from the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation and San Diego-based Millennium Health sheds light on the epidemic of prescription drug abuse that is killing kids across the country.
Titled “If Only”, the 30-minute drama, produced by foundation president James Wahlberg, follows a group of high school friends who scavenge their parents’ medicine cabinets to fuel their house parties.
The idea is to start conversations by asking parents, community organizations, churches and educators to download the movie and screen it in groups and discuss what they saw on social media under the hashtag #dropthemoff.
The film screened in San Diego Monday, getting a reaction from District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis.
Prescription drug abuse among teenagers is a growing public health crisis that Millennium, which makes drug testing kits, is working to fight.
According to the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids, one in six teens has used a prescription drug not prescribed to them to get high or change their mood. And, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and prevention, deaths from drug overdoses have been steadily increasing. Half of the 43,982 overdoses in 2013 were pharmaceutical-related, and 71 percent of those were opiates such as Oxycodone and morphine.
Originally posted on UTSanDiego.com by Paul Sisson, 6/10/15