MAY 18, 2018

SC Attorney General Alan Wilson Helps Launch Digital Prescription Drug Safety Initiative for Teens

(GREENVILLE, S.C.) - May 17, 2018 - Attorney General Alan Wilson joined Greenville County Schools today at the launch of a new educational initiative aimed to empower South Carolina high school students with the skills to make safe and healthy decisions about prescription medications and understand the dangers of misusing these drugs. The program launch was held at Mauldin High School with representatives from the student government as well as school and district leadership.

 

The program, developed by EVERFI, the nation's leading technology innovator used in one-in-seven high schools nationwide, is available in select high schools across the state at no cost to the schools through support from founding members of the Prescription Drug Safety Network, which represents state and industry leaders, healthcare organizations, pharmaceutical companies, and community foundations all dedicated to stemming the opioid epidemic through a national youth prevention effort.

 

“South Carolina ranks 9th in the nation for number of opioids being prescribed" said Attorney General Alan Wilson. "We need to proactively educate young people on making informed, healthy decisions when it comes to prescription medications so we treat the cause and not the symptom.”

 

The Prescription Drug Safety program uses an evidence-based, public health approach to empower high school students with the skills and knowledge they need to make safe and healthy decisions about prescription drugs. Through interactive scenarios and self-guided activities, students learn the facts about drugs, how to properly use and dispose of them, and how to step in when faced with a situation involving misuse. The course is aligned with the Centers for Disease Control's National Health Education Standards and state academic standards.

 

"The most enlightening part of the training for me was the fact that we have been exposed and allowed to ‘give our say’ about the opioid crisis that has been gripping America,” said Ben Dority, a sophomore who’s involved in Mauldin High Student Government. “It's an even greater opportunity that we are able to meet with the state's attorney general and participate in a roundtable discussion. Our views as teenagers seem to be wanted, when oftentimes our voice may be discounted because of our age. History shows it is our young people who help to bring about the most systemic change in America."

 

In addition to the activation in South Carolina, the Prescription Drug Safety Network has supported programs all across the nation reaching over 50,000 high school students this academic year.

 

The digital prescription drug abuse prevention course is the flagship initiative of the Prescription Drug Safety Network, the nation's first public-private initiative to combat prescription drug abuse by providing prevention education to schools across the US. Walmart is a partner in the nationwide coalition, which is committed to empowering Americans with the skills to make safe and healthy decisions about prescription drug use for themselves, their families, and their communities.

 

About EVERFI, Inc.

EVERFI, Inc. is the leading education technology company that provides learners of all ages education for the real world, through innovative and scalable digital learning. Founded in 2008, EVERFI has certified over 16 million learners in critical skill areas with more than 4,300 partners in all 50 U.S. States and Canada. EVERFI is an industry convenor that builds Networks to tackle the toughest social issues, including the Campus Prevention Network, a coalition of higher education institutions committed to campus sexual assault and alcohol abuse prevention; and the Financial Capability Network, a coalition of industry leaders dedicated to improving financial outcomes for communities across the country. Some of America’s leading CEOs and venture capital firms are EVERFI investors including Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt, Twitter founder Evan Williams, TPG Growth, and The Rise Fund. 

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