South Lake Tahoe Police Department and Drug Enforcement Administration officials will accept unwanted prescription drugs this Saturday, April 28th at Safeway in South Lake Tahoe.
By providing a place to dispose of medications, officials hope to help prevent abuse of prescription medication. The service will be free and anonymous.
Medicines that languish in home cabinets are susceptible to diversion, misuse and abuse, a press release from SLTPD stated. The number of prescription drug abuse instances, accidental poisonings and overdoses is high in the U.S., police said. Flushing medication down the toilet or throwing them in the trash pose safety and health hazards, the release stated.
Americans reportedly turned in 377,080 pounds of prescription drugs at more than 5,300 sites across the country during a take back event last October.