That bottle of pain pills left over from surgery three years ago? The prescription you stopped taking but never threw away?
Saturday is a good day to finally get them out of the house.
The Scioto County Sheriff’s Office is taking part in the DEA National Prescription Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, October 24, giving local residents a free way to dispose of unused and expired medications.
Drop-off will be available from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in front of the Scioto County Sheriff’s Office at 1025 16th Street in Portsmouth.
There’s no charge, and the drop-off is anonymous.
No questions asked.
Why Keep Old Medications Around?
Sheriff David Thoroughman said forgotten medications sitting in medicine cabinets can become a safety problem.
“Medicine cabinets across Scioto County are full of medications that are no longer needed, and every one of them is a risk,” Thoroughman said.
Old prescriptions can be accidentally taken by children, misused by teenagers or adults, or end up in the hands of someone they were never prescribed for.
The Sheriff’s Office also points out that prescription medication isn’t automatically safe just because it came from a pharmacy. Taken by the wrong person or in the wrong amount, it can be every bit as dangerous as an illegal drug.
Don’t Flush Them
Tossing pills loose in the trash isn’t necessarily the best answer either, since they can potentially be retrieved.
And flushing medication down the toilet can send drug residue into the water system.
That’s the point of Take Back Day: gather those old medications and put them into a disposal system designed to handle them safely.
“If you don’t safely dispose of unused or expired medications, someone else may find a use for them,” Thoroughman said.
So before Saturday, take a look through the bathroom cabinet, kitchen drawer, purse, or wherever those half-forgotten prescription bottles tend to collect.
If you don’t need them anymore, this is your chance to get rid of them safely.
