The 24th annual Drug Take Back was held on April 22.
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(Lawrenceburg, Ind.) – Over 330 tons of unwanted, unused, or expired medications were collected nationwide during the April Drug Take Back event.
The Drug Enforcement Administration sponsored the event on April 22.
Collection sites were set up nationwide to properly dispose of unwanted prescription medications, vaping pens without batteries and vaping cartridges.
According to the DEA, 663,725 pounds, or 332 tons of prescription medications were collected.
There were 4,955 collection sites nationwide, including 4,497 law enforcement agencies. Since the Drug Take Back Day was created, over 8,600 tons of medications have been collected for proper disposal.
Studies show that most abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet.
In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines - flushing them down the toilet or throwing them into the trash - pose both potential safety and health hazards.
Learn more at https://www.dea.gov/takebackday.