CHEROKEE COUNTY, Ga. — Investigators told Channel 2 Action News some hard-core addicts are combing through the trash at nursing homes and care facilities to find a potentially deadly high.
Channel 2's Tom Regan learned about the new trend from a top drug enforcement agent in Cherokee County.
The official said desperate addicts are climbing into dumpsters in hopes of finding discarded pain medication skin patches called Fentanyl.
Fentanyl is a potent, extended-release drug 80 times stronger than morphine. It's designed to relieve the chronic pain of cancer patients.
A recovering addict, who asked only to be named as Chris, told Regan he's used to the drug.
"Your whole body goes numb. It can be stronger than heroin," Chris said.
The patch releases a synthetic opiate over 72 hours. Investigators said they have seen instances where used patches were thrown away in the trash but retrieved by drug addicts.
'People actually jump in the dumpsters, dig them out behind the nursing homes and care centers," said Commander Phil Prices with the Cherokee County Multiagency Narcotics Squad. "We've seen them eaten, we've seen them put on the body. We've had overdoses because you can't tell how much Fentanyl is left when you get them out of the dumpster."
Price told Regan one Cherokee County man overdosed and died after using a discarded patch.
"A lot of people will get them, open them, chew on them or even smoke it or inject it," Chris said. "It's so tiny and powerful, a little could kill you."
Last month, the DEA issued new rules to prevent the misuse of unused pain medication at nursing homes and other extended-care facilities.
The group that advises hospice facilities in Georgia told Regan it already has such safeguards in place.
"There are specific regulations on how to dispose of medications," said Charlene Bunts, executive director of the Georgia Hospice and Palliative Care Organization.
Officials said nationwide there have been hundreds of overdose deaths linked to Fentanyl, including Fentanyl mixed with heroin.
WSBTV
