FARMINGTON – Local police departments and the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office will once again participate in the “National Drug Take Back Initiative” this Saturday, April 30, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Controlled, non-controlled and over the counter substances may be collected at the FCSO office, located on County Way Drive off the Fairbanks Road in Farmington, as well as at police stations in Farmington, at 116 Franklin Avenue; Jay, at 340 Main Street; and the Rangeley Police Department, at 15 School Street.
The program is anonymous and no questions or requests for identification will be made.
The previous 10 events, which began in 2010, collected more than 5 million pounds of old, expired, unused prescription medication. Unwanted and/or expired medicines are highly susceptible to misuse and abuse, according to health and law enforcement agencies that track the numbers of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to those drugs. Nationally, more than 60,000 young children a year end up in the emergency department because they got into medication when their parent or caregiver was not looking. Nearly 15 percent of Maine teens said they have taken a prescription drug not prescribed to them—sometimes from a family member.
“It’s important to treat your prescription drugs as you would cash and lock them up,” said Nicole Ditata, Healthy Community Coalition program director for the organization’s Drug Free Communities grant.
The take back program offers an alternative to flushing drugs, which could potentially enter the drinking water system. All collected drugs are incinerated to protect the environment.
Participants may dispose of medication in its original container or by removing the medication from its container and disposing of it directly into the disposal box. If an original container is submitted, the individual should be encouraged to remove any identifying information from the prescription label. All solid dosage pharmaceutical products, as well as expired vitamins and pet medication, will be accepted.
Intra-venous solutions, injectibles, and syringes will not be accepted due to potential hazard posed by blood-borne pathogens. Illicit substances such as marijuana or methamphetamine are not a part of this initiative and should not be placed in collection containers.
In addition to the National Take Back Day event, there are also two med return boxes available in Franklin County, one at the Farmington Police Department and one at the Jay Police Department. Residents can drop off their expired or unused prescription medication any time during normal business hours at either location.
For more information or to learn how to safely dispose of medications, contact Healthy Community Coalition Program Coordinator Lorri Brown at 779-2409 or ljbrown@fchn.org .
