Photo Courtesy PCN
20th “National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day” to be held on Saturday, April 24th
HARRISBURG – State Sen. Gene Yaw (R-23) today announced that the 20th Semi-Annual “National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day,” sponsored by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), will be held on Saturday, April 24th, 2021, from 10AM-2PM.
Residents living throughout Bradford, Lycoming, Sullivan, Susquehanna and Union counties are encouraged to participate in the pharmaceutical “spring cleaning” by taking back expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs. Safe disposal drop-off locations are located in every county and can be found by going to the Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs website, click here.
“National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day” events continue to remove expired and unused opioids and other medicines from Pennsylvania homes. During the October 2020 Take-Back Day event, 189 Pennsylvania law enforcement agencies collected 36,949 pounds of unused or expired medications from 209 collection sites across the state. Since the inception of the program on September 25th, 2010, over 597,120 pounds of medications have been returned and destroyed in Pennsylvania.
“Take-Back Day is an excellent way to reduce drug abuse and misuse across the board,” Sen. Yaw said. “It’s not only about preventing people from stealing or abusing prescription drugs, but it’s also about preventing accidental use and overdose, especially by our senior population. Further, many people are unsure on how to properly dispose of the medications, so they flush them down the toilet or throw them in the garbage. This can lead to the medications entering into our water supply, which is a huge environmental concern.”
In 2014, Senator Yaw supported Senate Bill 1180, now Act 191, creating a statewide prescription drug monitoring program in the Commonwealth to expand upon the types of drugs already monitored and increase access for pharmacists and health care practitioners with prescriptive rights. Since that time, he has championed several legislative initiatives, which are now law, including expanded education requirements for prescribers and limiting opioids for minors.
Learn more about “National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day” at www.deatakeback.com, or by calling 800-882-9539.
For more state-related news and information visit Senator Yaw’s website at www.SenatorGeneYaw.com or on Facebook and Twitter @SenatorGeneYaw.
