DEA And Governor Wolf Announce 15th National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day

PHILADELPHIA - Special Agent in (SAC) Jon Wilson of the Drug Enforcement Administration’(DEA) Philadelphia Division and Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced today that the DEA and its state and local law enforcement partners will conduct its 15th National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day event tomorrow, April 28th between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

As with previous Take-Back events, approximately 330 collection sites will be available across Pennsylvania 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.DEATakeBack.com or by (800) 882-9539.

During the last Take-Back event in October 2017, the public turned in 456 (912,000 pounds) of prescription drugs at almost 5,300 sites operated by the DEA and its state and local law enforcement partners nationwide; 36,909 pounds were collected in Pennsylvania alone. Overall, in its 14 previous Take Back events, over 9 million (4,500 tons) of prescription drugs have been collected.

“Disposing of leftover painkillers or other potentially addictive medicines in the house is one of the best ways to prevent a member of your family from becoming a victim of the opioid epidemic,” said SAC Wilson. “More people start down the path of substance use disorder with opioid prescription drugs than any other substance.”

“It’s imperative that we do all that we can to help staunch the flow of devastation the heroin and opioid epidemic is having on our state,” said Governor Wolf. “By providing convenient, easily accessed drug take-back boxes, we continue to significantly reduce the number of prescriptions drugs being used for purposes other than those intended.”

This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. 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. DEA launched its prescription drug take back program when both the Environmental Protection Agency and the Food and Drug Administration advised the public that flushing these drugs down the toilet or throwing them in the trash posed potential safety and health hazards.

A list of permanent prescription drug take-back boxes in communities across Pennsylvania is available at www.ddap.pa.gov. To date, 694 permanent collection boxes are now available across the state.

For more information about DEA’s Take-Back program, please contact DEA Public Information Officer/Supervisory Special Agent Patrick J. Trainor at (215) 852-8740 or patrick.j.trainor@usdoj.gov.