Program is part of initiative to rid homes of outdated and unused drugs that could fall into the wrong hands
The Racine County Sheriff’s Office is participating in the national take back unwanted prescription drug program on Saturday at the patrol station on Highway 20 (Washington Avenue) at Highway C in the Town of Yorkville.
From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. the public will have an opportunity to drop off their outdated and unused prescriptions to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous drugs.
The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked. The address of the patrol station is 14116 Washington Ave., Sturtevant.
This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue, according to sheriff’s officials. Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse.
Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs, according to officials. Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet.
In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines—flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash—both pose potential safety and health hazards.
The federal Drug Enforcement Agency is in the process of approving new regulations that implement the Safe and Responsible Drug Disposal Act of 2010, which amends the Controlled Substances Act to allow an “ultimate user” (that is, a patient or pet or their family member or owner) of controlled substance medications to dispose of them by delivering them to entities authorized by the Attorney General to accept them. The Act also allows the Attorney General to authorize long term care facilities to dispose of their residents’ controlled substances in certain instances.
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