Riverside County residents who want to get rid of expired, unused and unwanted drugs will have an opportunity to discard them at multiple locations April 30 during National Drug Take-Back Day.
The effort, organized by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, in partnership with local law enforcement agencies, is intended to highlight the importance of taking commonly abused drugs out of circulation.
County residents are invited to dispose of unwanted pills at the following sites between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.:
— Corona Police Department, parking lot, 730 Public Safety Way;
— Murrieta Police Department, 2 Town Square;
— Palm Springs Police Department, 200 S. Civic Drive; and
— Riverside Police Department collection site in Kaiser Medical Center parking lot, 10800 Magnolia Ave.
Additional sites are expected to be added closer to the date of the event.
In addition to drugs, vaping pens and cartridges will also be accepted at drop-off locations, organizers said.
No questions will be asked of people disposing of medications or other ingestible products. More information is available at www.dea.gov/takebackday.
The DEA began holding drug take-backs 12 years ago to provide the public with a more secure means of disposal. Since its first take-back event, almost 15 million pounds of prescription and non-prescription drugs have been collected at thousands of disposal sites throughout the country, according to the agency.
“Take-Back Day is a critical effort to curb the historic surge in U.S. overdoses,” DEA Administrator Anne Milgram said. “We know prevention starts at home. The simple step of clearing out medications that are no longer needed makes our homes safer, prevents prescription drug misuse, and ultimately can help save lives.”
In the 12-month period ending in November, an estimated 106,000 people died in drug overdoses — the highest one-year count on record, according to the DEA. Roughly three-quarters of those deaths were from opioid use, principally the synthetic drug fentanyl, officials said.
The DEA noted that provisions in the federal Secure & Responsible Drug Disposal Act authorize pharmacies, hospitals and other facilities to serve as collection sites year-round.