(CNS) – Residents of Riverside County who want to get rid of expired, unused and unwanted medications will have the option of disposing of them at several locations on Saturday during National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day.
The effort, organized by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration in partnership with local law enforcement, aims to highlight the importance of removing commonly used drugs from circulation.
“The purpose of this program is to provide a safe, convenient, and responsible way to dispose of prescription drugs while educating the public about potential drug abuse,” according to the DEA. “Drug overdose deaths have increased by 16% over the past year, killing more than 290 people every day. Studies show that the majority of prescription drugs abused were obtained from family and friends.
The DEA held its first rerun for 2022 in April. The agency started organizing covers 12 years ago. Since its inaugural drug take-back event, more than 15 million pounds of prescription and over-the-counter drugs have been collected from thousands of disposal sites across the country, according to the agency.
In 2021, about 108,000 people died from drug overdoses, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About three-quarters of those deaths were from opioid use, primarily the synthetic drug Fentanyl, officials said.
The DEA noted that provisions of the federal Safe and Responsible Drug Disposal Act allow pharmacies, hospitals and other facilities to serve as collection sites year-round.
County residents are asked to dispose of unwanted pills at the following sites between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. on Saturday:
— Corona Police Department parking lot, 730 Public Safety Way;
— Murrieta Police Department, 2 Town Square;
— Palm Springs Police Department, 200 S. Civic Drive; and
– Riverside Police Department collection sites, across from Kaiser Medical Center, 3660 Park Sierra Drive, and outside DeAnza Ambulatory Surgery Center at Riverside Community Hospital, 4444 Magnolia Ave.
In addition to medication, vape pens and cartridges will also be accepted at drop-off locations.
No questions will be asked of people disposing of medications or other ingestible products. More information is available at https://www.dea.gov/takebackday.
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