What’s in your medicine cabinet?

Prescription drug abuse among teens is on the rise, and community leaders in Valley Stream want to do something about it.

The Valley Stream Wellness Committee, a partnership of the four school districts, will be taking part in the national Medicine Abuse Project in an effort to raise awareness of the problem among parents and students. Specifically, the group will be pushing for locked medicine cabinets in homes.

Jill Vogel, the director of guidance for the Central High School District, chairs the committee, and said this issue is a concern for the group. “There’s been a lot of publicity on prescription drug abuse,” she said. “What an epidemic it is among young people.”

Drug Free America has launched the Medicine Abuse Project, and is calling parents to action by asking them to lock up their prescription drugs, dispose of unused drugs and talk to their children about the risks involved in taking prescription and over-the-counter medications.

Vogel pointed to the many television and radio advertisements for Drug Free America that have been airing recently. She said the that Wellness Committee wants to build on this by educating its own community.

Tony Spezio, a community member of the committee, has reached out to Home Depot and has arranged to have locked medicine cabinet boxes available for parents to purchase at cost. After contacting the home improvement store’s corporate headquarters, Spezio heard from a vice president. He said he received a commitment from Home Depot that the boxes would be available for $38 instead of the normal $59 retail price, and that the company would pick up the cost of shipping. “We’ve inspired Home Depot to get involved nationwide,” Spezio said.

In another initiative, the committee plans to contact village and Town of Hempstead officials to discuss the possibility of modifying local building codes. Vogel said the committee is seeking a requirement that any new construction include a medicine cabinet with a lockable compartment.