Hidden Valley Lake >> A large group filled Hidden Valley Lake’s community center in anticipation of the Soroptimist International of Clear Lake’s annual “Spring Fling.” Before a live auction began and raffle and silent auction winners were announced, April Rovero, the Founder and CEO of the National Coalition Against Prescription Drug Abuse (NCAPDA) spoke passionately to the crowd. NCAPDA works to make people aware of the dangers of prescription drug abuse.
The message is fitting for an organization dedicated to improving the lives of women and girls in the community and beyond. And given that the Spring Fling is an important fundraiser for the Soroptimists, the message emphasized the importance of caring for each person.
On June 2, 2010, Rovero set up NCAPDA, just months after the passing of her youngest son, Joey Rovero, an Arizona State University student and football player, from a lethal combination of prescription drugs and alcohol. Rovero and a couple of friends had traveled to Los Angeles to obtain prescription medication from a doctor in the city. He walked away with Xanax and Oxycodone, which were later combined with alcohol. Rovero said that the amount of alcohol found in her son’s system was just under the legal limit, but mixing the substances resulted in a heartbreaking consequence.
“What happened to Joey is absolutely tragic,” Rovero said. She added that his death was the first of a train of nine deaths on the Arizona State campus. Just over a week after Rovero’s passing, his roommate died as well.
The doctor Rovero and his friends saw in Los Angeles was arrested and on March 1, 2012, she was charged with second degree murder in Joey Rovero’s death, according to Rovero. This doctor is linked to 18 deaths, she added.
Before losing her son, Rovero said that she didn’t know anything about prescription drug abuse, but after the tragedy she was determined to arm herself with information. She wanted desperately to stop this from happening to another family. “What I learned is how important every single individual in this world is,” she said.
Rovero’s entire family was profoundly affected by Joey Rovero’s death. However, instead of allowing grief to consume them Rovero said that she’s proud of her family for tackling the issue. “We’re all taking action and I think that’s the way people need to try and deal with this,” she said.
Rovero and NCAPDA travel to schools in the Bay Area, where they speak to students about the dangers of prescription drug abuse. She said that often kids first become addicted to prescription medication after intense dental work. They’re usually prescribed Vicodin and an addiction can develop from there. She also listed using Adderall as a stimulant to study and abusing cough syrup — the latter is a particular problem in lower-income areas — as the beginning of what could develop into a bigger issue.
“Pain killers evolve into Heroin when they can’t afford the pills anymore,” Rovero said.
When speaking to students, Rovero asks where they often see prescription drug abuse and it’s no surprise that the entertainment industry and social media are their most common answers. Rovero referenced the film “The Wolf of Wall Street,” where Leonardo Dicaprio’s character takes prescription drugs and gets behind the wheel. In the film, he bangs up his car but walks away unscathed. “That isn’t reality,” said Rovero. “The reality is that we’re seeing precious young people and older people die every day.”
According to Rovero, 40 people die each day from prescription medication abuse and drug overdose deaths now outnumber car accident deaths.
But prescription medication abuse isn’t just an issue for the youth. “This problem affects every age group,” Rovero said. Elderly people are at a high risk of overdose, especially if they don’t have someone looking after them. They can forget if they’ve taken their medication or they’ll often see multiple doctors, who may prescribe medications which shouldn’t be mixed. Rovero urges family members to pay close attention to their older loved ones to prevent this from happening. This is an issue that plagues much of Lake County, according to Rovero. She said Lake County has the highest overdose rate of any county in California. The deaths are not all due to prescription medication abuse, but many are.
Rovero said various factors are to blame. There is money to be made on selling prescription drugs at every level on the supply chain, from pharmaceutical companies to doctors to pharmacies to drug trade by dealers. The going rate for prescription pills on the street is one dollar per milligram, stated Rovero.
So it is for these reasons and many others that Rovero is working hard to equip people with information to stop prescription drug abuse. She and NCAPDA are encouraging people to watch for signs of abuse and ask their doctors for Naloxone, a drug which works in the body reverse the effects of an opioid, if a person has taken any. Naloxone can save someone’s life, said Rovero.
Soroptimist International of Clear Lake were thrilled that Rovero came to speak at the luncheon and as a show of their gratitude and support of her organization, they donated funds to NCAPDA.
Jennifer Gruenke can be reached at 900-2019.
