CLEARFIELD – The Clearfield Borough police will accept unused or expired medications for safe disposal on April 26. As part of the eighth National Take-back Initiative, police will accept drugs from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the police station.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration will coordinate this collaborative effort with state and local law enforcement agencies. Its focus is “to remove potentially dangerous controlled substances from the nation’s medicine cabinets.”
The DEA started a National Take-back Day “to provide a unified opportunity for the public to surrender expired, unwanted or unused pharmaceutical controlled substances and other medications to law enforcement for destruction,” stated a DEA press release.
“The one-day effort will bring national focus to the issue of pharmaceutical controlled substance abuse. The program also provides an opportunity for law enforcement and the prevention, treatment and business community to collaborate and establish a safe collection site for all Americans, regardless of where they reside.”
On April 26 during Take-back Day:
- Controlled, non-controlled and over-the-counter medications will be collected by state and local law enforcement agencies.
- Collection efforts may be combined with community drug-related awareness activities and involve the distribution of brochures and other information.
- Anyone who brings drugs for disposal will remain anonymous; all efforts will be made to protect the anonymity of individuals who dispose of medications. No questions or requests for identification will be made by law enforcement personnel who are present.
- Participants can/not mandatorily remove any personal information from bottles or packages that contain pills/capsules and liquids and place the bottles or packages into the disposal box.
- No effort should be made by law enforcement to count, inventory or log medications (unless it’s required by the site due to grant funding, etc.).
- Liquid products and creams in containers will be accepted.
- Sharps and syringes will not be accepted due to the potential hazard posed by blood-borne pathogens.
- Illicit substances, such as marijuana or methamphetamine, are not a part of this initiative and shouldn’t be placed in collection boxes. If someone attempts to surrender illicit controlled substances, law enforcement will handle such material as abandoned property in accordance with department policy.
- A law enforcement officer will remain with the drug disposal box at all times. Collected pharmaceutical products will be handled as drug evidence to safeguard the surrendered material.
After the event, law enforcement will seal the drug disposal boxes, weigh the boxes and label the boxes with the weight, site location and department’s name. The boxes will be kept at the department for temporary storage and safekeeping per its standard operating procedures until turned over to their DEA point of contact who will provide police with a receipt for the medication.
The DEA will transport the boxes to the disposal site in accordance with its protocols.