National Rx drug take-back days coming to Sussex County

SUSSEX COUNTY — Due to strong participation, the community along with law enforcement in Sussex County, will again participate in event planned to dispose of unused, unwanted, expired medications.

For too many New Jerseyans, addiction begins in the medicine cabinet. Sussex County residents can help prevent unused or unwanted medications from finding their way into the hands of those who might abuse them. Mark your calendar for Saturday, Oct. 26 and Nov. 9 between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. to visit one of the locations listed below.

This service is free and anonymous, no questions asked. Be proactive and join other concerned and caring community members becoming part of the solution to reducing prescription drug abuse.

On Oct. 26 and Nov. 9 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., local law enforcement will provide the public another opportunity to prevent prescription and over-the-counter drug abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous, expired, unused and unwanted drugs. Sussex County residents are urged to bring their medications for disposal to several convenient sites available throughout the county.

A link to locate a collection site near you is now posted on the Center for Prevention and Counseling’s Web site at www.centerforprevention.org.

Last September, Americans turned in 242,000 pounds or 121 tons of unwanted medication drugs at nearly 4,100 sites operated by the DEA and more than 3,000 state and local law enforcement partners. Last year, Sussex County alone disposed of over 1,800 pounds of medications.

Statewide, National Take-Back Day is sponsored by the New Jersey Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey, Office of the New Jersey Attorney General, Governor’s Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, New Jersey Prevention Network, and New Jersey Chiefs of Police Association. Locally, this year, on Oct. 26 sites for disposal include the Andover Township Police Department, the Byram Shop Rite (w/ the Byram Police), the Hamburg Police Department, and the Ogdensburg Police Department. On Saturday, Nov. 9 The Sussex County Municipal Utility Authority on Route 94 in Lafayette will be the site for disposal with the Sussex County Sheriff’s Office assisting.

Year round, the following police departments contain 24 hour drop boxes for medication disposal: Hopatcong Police Department, NJ State Police, Sussex Barracks, Augusta, Newton Police Department, Sparta Police Department, and Vernon Police Department. Participation is also made possible with assistance from the Sussex County Prosecutor’s Office.

This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs. Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from home medicine cabinets. In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines-flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash-poses potential safety, environmental and health risks.

Becky Carlson, Assistant Director of the Center for Prevention and Counseling said, “When the Sussex County Prescription Drug Task Force started in 2008, it had a vision to have prescription drug medication disposal days occur twice a year in our county. Now, less than four years later, that is a reality with an event in the spring and the fall and not only is it happening in our county, but nationwide. In addition, Sussex County now has five drop boxes open 24/7 in local police department lobbies. This effort is making a huge difference in reducing access and abuse of prescription drugs for youth, young adults and elders. Community problems need community solutions and that is what happened due to the work of concerned community members.” Prescriptions collected during National Take-Back Day are taken to a central location to be incinerated.