Opioids have become a national crisis due to the severe abuse of prescription drugs, heroin, and synthetic opioids. There are agencies and groups that are coming together to do what they can to provide public service announcements in as many ways as they can come up with.
The DEA has a diversion plan that has increasingly helped dispose of prescription medication to prevent it from getting into the wrong hands. From teens who can access their parent’s medicine cabinets to unused pain medication that may be stolen by an addicted family member, there is a process to removing any unwanted or unused medications that be dangerous to somebody other than who they were prescribed to.
National Prescription Take Back Day is April 28, 2018 and is hosted by the DEA. Although the agency will not have the specified locations distinguished until April 1st, this event should be put on the calendar to help anyone who needs help getting rid of prescription medications and access to disposal locations. The whole point of this action is to make sure that the people who need of pain medication get what they need without provoking the negative consequences that comes from abusing painkillers. To properly dispose of medication before National Prescription Take Back Day occurs, there are two specific ways to be rid of these drugs.
Throwing drugs away in the household trash.
Take the drug out the original container and mix it with something unappealing such as used kitty litter, dirt, or coffee grounds to keep pets, children, or someone looking for drugs from getting ahold of it. Put the mixture into something such as a Ziploc bag, or something that can conceal the drugs better to keep it from spilling out. Once this is complete, throw the mixture in the trash. Make sure to take your name off any prescription bottles to keep your personal information secure.
Flushing drugs in the toilet or the sink.
Check with the medication instructions on the packaging, or included pamphlet, to see how the medication should be disposed of. Some medications can be extremely harmful if not used as prescribed, so they are best when flushed immediately to avoid any adverse ramifications.
Confirm to see if the local pharmacy has any mail-back programs or a kiosk to collect and properly dispose of unwanted medication.
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