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Montana ranks third-highest in the nation for teen abuse of prescription pain relievers, and the state's Attorney General has a new approach to bring that figure down.

A new report shows that nearly 10% of Montana teens have abused or misused prescription drugs in the past month alone.

Montana is one of only seven states without a prescription drug registry or monitoring program.

The Attorney General's office has gone before the Montana Legislature twice asking for a similar program, but it failed both times; now, officials say they have revamped the bill to bring it forward during the upcoming session.

Siri Smilie of the Attorney General's office said, "What they see on the street and what they are able to buy from drug dealers are pills. That is the most common drug they see and we also know that we are losing hundreds of Montanans every year to prescription drug overdose, mixed toxicity, and other complications that are side effects of misuse and abuse."

Prescription drug collection days have been held across the state to help folks dispose of them properly in recent months; the next scheduled event is September 25th in every major Montana city.

Visit the MT Department of Justice website to learn more.