Local law enforcement agencies, Area Substance & Alcohol Abuse Prevention (ASAAP), and the South Heartland District Health Department (SHDHD) are partnering with the National Drug Enforcement Agency to give the public another opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused and unwanted prescription drugs. The service is free and anonymous.
Bring your prescription and over-the-counter medications for disposal to one of four sites available in the South Heartland Health District: Adams County: Hastings Police Department, 317 S Burlington Ave, Hastings Avenue, in Hastings, on Saturday, April 30 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Clay County: Ongoing at Clay County Sheriff’s Office, in Clay Center
Nuckolls County: Ongoing at Superior Police Department, in Superior (8 a.m. to noon, Monday through Friday)
Webster County: Ongoing at Webster County Sheriff’s Office, in Red Cloud
This opportunity addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines 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 because of these drugs. Studies show a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from home medicine cabinets.
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics and Safe Kids Worldwide, approximately 3 million people swallow or have contact with a poisonous substance each year. Among young children, 95 percent of medication-related poisoning visits to emergency departments are caused by a child ingesting medication while unsupervised. Up to 20 percent of pediatric poisonings involve a grandparent’s medication. Parents and grandparents are urged to learn about how to store medicines safely, give medicines safely and get rid of medicines safely. Residents are advised that disposing of unused medicines by flushing them down the toilet or throwing them unaltered into the trash pose potential safety and health hazards. National DEA Drug Take Back events use an environmentally safe method to dispose of the medicines collected during National Drug Take Back Day events.
Local pharmacies are another resource for free and safe medication disposal every day. Don’t keep leftover medications and don’t flush leftover medications. Safely dispose of them by returning them to a participating pharmacy. To learn how and where, visit nebraskameds.org.
In case of a poisoning emergency, contact Poison Control Center: (800) 222-1222. For more information about medication take back events, call SHDHD toll-free at 877-238-7595.
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