One Pill Can Kill
Today, Attorney General Miyares launched the “One Pill Can Kill” public awareness campaign. According to data from the Virginia Department of Health, emergency department visits for unintentional opioid overdoses have been on the rise for many years. Virginia localities have recently had to respond to a pattern of overdoses.
We have taken this opportunity to update the materials in the Opioid curriculum to include information from the campaign, which is provided by the Drug Enforcement Administration (https://www.dea.gov/onepill). All three pieces, Lesson Plan, Student Handout and PPT Presentation, have been updated with this info. Video and off-site resources have been added to the Virginia Rules website.
THC Counterfeit Edibles
National poison control centers received over 10,000 single substance exposure cases involving edible products containing THC between January 1, 2021 and May 31, 2022. Of these cases, 77% involved patients 19 years of age or younger.
THC-infused edibles packaged to look like regular snacks and candy are part of the problem. New Virginia law makes it illegal to package marijuana products in this way, so that children don’t accidentally confuse them with regular products. Help us get the word out on the risk of counterfeits. All three pieces of the Alcohol, Tobacco & Marijuana curriculum have been updated to reflect this.
Other Resources
There are other helpful resources out there as you plan your teaching session.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dy0D-P7sn4g (AG Jason Miyares’ video on One Pill Can Kill)
- https://www.justthinktwice.gov/ (geared to students)
- https://www.operationprevention.com/ (parents and schools)
- https://www.getsmartaboutdrugs.gov/ (parents and educators)
- https://www.dea.gov/onepill (community)
