April 28 Is Drug Take Back Day

April 28, 2018 is National Prescription Drug Take Back Day. Launched in 2010 by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), this biannual event addresses “a crucial public safety and public health issue” by providing numerous venues across the country for individuals to dispose of their unused prescription drugs and combat related overdose deaths and addiction.

On the agency’s take-back day website, public service announcement videos from this and previous years — available in English and Spanish — feature personalities that include current and former National Football League athletes. In these short videos, celebrities highlight the potential dangers of failing to adequately dispose of prescription drug medications and call viewers to “take this simple step to stop the devastation of drug abuse and overdose.”

“Don’t be the dealer” is this year’s Take Back Day motto.

The previous DEA take-back event held in October 2017 resulted in the collection of 456 tons of unused prescription drugs from 5321 collection sites across the country and involved more than 4000 law enforcement individuals.

The agency provides a number of resources, including information on a wide variety of drugs, drug disposal guidelines, drug scheduling, and year-round prescription drug disposal. In addition, a link to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service’s Treatment Services Locator is provided, as well as brief information on medication-assisted treatment and naloxone.

Individuals can locate take-back sites in their vicinity by using this link.

Reference

Drug Enforcement Administration. National prescription drug take back day. Available at: https://takebackday.dea.gov/. Accessed on April 26, 2018.

This article originally appeared on Clinical Pain Advisor