DEA Announces 12th National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day
Event will take place on Saturday, October 22nd between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.
PHILADELPHIA - Special Agent in Charge Gary Tuggle of the Drug Enforcement Administration’(DEA) Philadelphia Division announced today that the DEA will conduct its 12th National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day event on Saturday, October 22nd between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.
As with previous Take-Back events, approximately 353 collection sites will be available across Pennsylvania and Delaware for the public to anonymously and safely dispose of their unwanted, unneeded, or expired prescription drugs for free. A list of collection sites in communities across the region can be found by going to www.dea.gov.
During the last Take-Back event in April 2016, the DEA and over 4,200 of its national, tribal, and community law enforcement partners collected approximately 893,498 (447 tons) of unwanted prescription drugs at almost 5,400 collection sites across the country. Since the program began in 2010, approximately 6.4 million (3,200 tons) of drugs have been collected; that’s more than a quarter pound of pills for each of the 25 million American children aged 12 to 17 -- pills that won’t result in abuse or overdose.
The Take-Back initiative addresses a vital public safety and health issue. Rates of prescription drug abuse across the country are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs. Studies show that the majority of those who misused prescription opioids in the past 12 months obtained the drug from a friend or relative.
“The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy’s National Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention Plan calls for the proper disposal of unused, unneeded, and expired medications,” said Tuggle. “Participating in the DEA’s Take-Back event meets that goal. I encourage the public to take full advantage of this free service that the DEA offers to safely dispose of their prescription medicine.”
For more information about the Take-Back event, please contact DEA Public Information Officer/Special Agent Patrick J. Trainor at (215) 852-8740 or patrick.j.trainor@usdoj.gov.
