National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day - April 30, 2011
2nd Annual Take-Back Day Results
DEA National Pharmaceutical
Take-Back Day - Saturday April 30, 2011
Why the DEA, EPA and FDA support the use of medicine take-back programs.
In the news...DEA April 30th Take-Back Event
Washington Residents Use Take-Back Event
Washington State Results:
8,535 pounds of drugs at 85 collection sites in 4 hours!
Prescription drugs, including controlled substances, and over-the-counter medicines were collected by DEA or local law enforcement from 10 am – 2 pm on Saturday, April 30th. The 1st National Take-Back Day on September 25, 2010 netted similar results in WA: 8,931 pounds of medicines at 90 collection sites.
Washington has 281 cities and towns, yet we had just 85 collection sites on April 30th due to limited resources of local law enforcement to participate. Imagine the amount of drugs that could be safely collected for proper disposal if every community had an ongoing drug drop-off program!
Top three reasons people didn’t use their medicines, from a voluntary, informal poll at four of the April 30th take-back day sites in Washington state:
- medicines had expired
- doctor had changed their prescription or given them new medicine, and
- stopped using medicine because of negative side effects.
The most frequent comment people made when returning their medicines was “Glad this is offered!”
What residents were saying about the April 30th DEA Take-Back Day...
Average pounds of drugs returned by each participant: The number of people dropping off drugs was counted at 3 sites to determine the average pounds collected per participant:
- 3.0 pounds of medicines average per person in North Bend
- 1.9 pounds average per person in Silverdale, and
- 1.4 pounds average per person in Issaquah.
Examples of amount of drugs collected in WA communities on April 30th:
Bothell – 50 lbs / Issaquah – 50 lbs / Mercer Island – 140 lbs / North Bend – 75 lbs / Seattle (7 locations) – 422 lbs / Sequim – 200 lbs / Silverdale - 394 pounds / Snohomish Co (14 locations) – 475 lbs / Snoqualmie – 60 lbs / Stanwood – 104 lbs / Vancouver - 336 lbs, pill containers removed / Vashon Island – 130 lbs.
What do Washington residents do if they missed the April 30th take-back event?
Some communities, pharmacies and law enforcement agencies are paying for take-back programs but their funding is not sustainable. DEA’s support is short-term. Washington needs secure take-back programs year-round to keep our families and our waters safe.
National Results:
Americans turned in 376,593 pounds (or 188 tons) at the 5,361 take-back sites that were available in all 50 states. 55% more than the 121 tons collected during the Sept. 25, 2010 event.
The DEA is coordinating occasional National Drug Take-Back Days on an interim basis until DEA finishes developing regulations that will provide new opportunities for collection of narcotics and stimulants without presence of law enforcement. See more on this change in federal law at: https://takebackyourmeds.org/make-it-happen/proposed-state-law/new-federal-bill
Another Huge Turnout At DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take-Back Event
“The amount of prescription drugs turned in by the American public during the first two Take-Back events is simply staggering—309 tons—and represents a clear need for a convenient way to rid homes of unwanted or expired prescription drugs,” said DEA Administrator Michele M. Leonhart - DEA media release http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback/index.html