At least 10 people died in the northwest corner of the state from prescription drug overdoses between April 30 and mid-August, according to Steve Herrmann's records.

Herrmann, a Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation agent for the northwest enforcement team, said his unit is paying much more attention to prescription drug abuse and misuse because "it's killing people.

"I've been up in Powell for about 12 years, and there's been only four deaths related to meth - three overdoses and one murder," Herrmann said.

Prescription drug abuse has been around a long time, Herrmann said, but law enforcement had often overlooked it to focus on methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana use.

"It's not the 'hot girls and fast cars' of a meth case," Herrmann said. "We were always chasing those, chasing them out of state … where every part of it was illegal."

With the number of cases "getting bigger and bigger," Kebin Haller, deputy director of DCI, said prescription drugs are now on the minds of law enforcement agencies across the state. However, he said it is going to take whole communities banding together - doctors, pharmacists, police officers, judges, parents, teachers - to help solve the problem.

Ritch Wagner and Rick Zenuch, retired law enforcement agents who now work for Purdue Pharma, spoke to medical professionals and law enforcement officials from across the state in Casper and Cheyenne this week about ways to combat this type of drug abuse.

Purdue Pharma is the maker of OxyContin, a narcotic painkiller that is often abused.

More prescription drugs are creeping up the list of the 20 most widely abused substances, Wagner said, including the painkiller hydrocodone and methadone, a narcotic commonly used to treat heroin addiction that is now used to treat pain.

Abusers are beginning to learn it can "be more advantageous" to use prescription drugs to get high than drugs such as meth, cocaine and heroin. They are easier to obtain, and people think they are safe because doctors prescribe them.

"In my day and age, it was how many of Dad's beers we can sneak out of the fridge," Wagner said. "Now, it's how many pills can I get out of the medicine cabinet."

Wagner said children are taking whatever pills they can get their hands on, throwing them into a bowl and taking a handful. They're called punch-bowl or grab-bag parties.

Marsha Nichols, a pharmacist at Wyoming Medical Center, said her teenage son went to a friend's house but left when he found out it was a prescription drug party.

Nichols attended Wednesday night's presentation to the medical community at Wyoming Medical Center. Media representatives weren't allowed to attend the law enforcement portion Thursday morning.

Another pharmacist at the hospital, Patti Nelson, said people should bring leftover pills to the hospital's medication disposal events to prevent them from falling into the wrong hands.

As a pharmacist, Nelson has seen people alter and forge prescriptions.

Wagner said pharmacists should document everything they do behind the counter and educate doctors on how they can help. Doctors can write out quantities and use colored ink to prevent forging.

Pharmacists should always ask for identification, scrutinize the prescription, check to make sure doses make sense and call the prescribing doctor or police if there is any discrepancy.

"We don't expect you to be police officers, to do our job," Zenuch said. "But if something doesn't seem right, trust your instincts."

Zenuch talked to pharmacists about how they can make their pharmacies safer.

He said pharmacies should have vaults for controlled substances and routine store-closing procedures. He said it is helpful to involve local law enforcement to offer advice on what the pharmacy could do to protect itself.

Haller said the Legislature might need to get involved, because Wyoming doesn't have the best prescription drug diversion laws. He said legislators could add more medicines to the controlled substance list and implement a better controlled substance monitoring system.

Contact health reporter Allison Rupp at (307) 266-0534 or allison.rupp@trib.com.