CLEAN OUT YOUR MEDICINE CABINET ON APRIL 29
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Marcia Mueting, Nebraska Pharmacists Association, 402-420-1500; Joan McVoy, Nebraska Regional Poison Center, 800-222-1222; Jennifer Wemhoff, The Groundwater Foundation, 402-434-2740
LINCOLN, NE (March 23, 2017) – When was the last time you cleaned out your medicine cabinet?
Unused medication left in your medicine cabinet has the potential to fall into the wrong hands, and may lead to drug abuse or accidental poisoning. Prescription drug abuse is a fast growing problem in the United States, and a grandparent’s medication is involved in 38% of child poisoning cases.
Instead of flushing or trashing those old medications, take them to a collection site on Saturday, April 29 as part of the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day.
Over-the-counter and prescription medications can contaminate waterways – rivers, lakes, and groundwater – when flushed, put down the drain, or thrown in the trash. Most water treatment facilities do not have the capacity to remove these compounds.
The National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day provides a safe, convenient, and responsible means of disposing of prescription drugs, reducing the potential for abuse, accidental overdose, and environmental impact. After April 1, find a collection site at www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback/.
In addition, pharmacies across Nebraska will take back unused medications at any time as part of the Nebraska MEDS initiative. Over 300 pharmacies across the state accept medications for proper disposal, giving consumers an easy and safe method of keeping medications out of the environment and from falling into the wrong hands. Every day is Take-Back Day in Nebraska.
Since August 2012, over 33,000 pounds of medication have been collected by Nebraska pharmacies for safe disposal as part of Nebraska MEDS. Find a participating pharmacy near you at www.nebraskameds.org or call the Nebraska Regional Poison Center at 1-800-222-1222.
The Nebraska MEDS initiative is funded by the Nebraska Environmental Trust and the Nebraska Legislature. The Nebraska Medication Education on Disposal Strategies (MEDS) Coalition educates Nebraskans about drug disposal and provide safe ways to dispose of them in order to better safeguard the environment and protect public health. The Coalition includes the Nebraska Pharmacists Association, Lincoln/Lancaster County Health Department, Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality, Nebraska Regional Poison Center, Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, WasteCap Nebraska, and The Groundwater Foundation.
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