This Saturday, the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) is running a national take-back event for prescription drugs, encouraging residents to safely dispose of their expired or unwanted medications.
Our own Richmond District Police Station (461 6th Avenue) will serve as a collection site from 10am until 2pm. A receptacle will be set up in the lobby at the station for folks to deposit unwanted prescription medications.
Live elsewhere in San Francisco? Find other drop-off locations
The National Take-Back Day provides an opportunity for the public to surrender expired, unwanted, or unused pharmaceutical controlled substances and other medications for destruction. These drugs are a potential source of supply for illegal use and an unacceptable risk to public health and safety. This one-day effort is intended to bring national focus to the issue of increasing pharmaceutical controlled substance abuse.
The drop-off program is anonymous and accepts prescription and over the counter solid dosage medications, i.e. tablets and capsules. Note that intra-venous solutions, injectables, needles and Illicit substances such as marijuana or methamphetamine will not be accepted.
This is a great excuse to clear out your medicine cabinet and get rid of your expired or unwanted meds. Read more about safe medication disposal, e.g. why you shouldn’t flush them down the toilet.
Sarah B.
It is a huge pain to dispose of medicine properly. If you really want to do it correctly, you have to call Recology and request a special envelope. But that’s just for over-the-counter stuff. For prescription drugs, you basically have to wait for one of these events. Quite a hassle — no wonder everyone just dumps them down the drain (and from there, into the bay).