LEBANON, Pa. — The Lebanon City Police Department announced it will be providing the public with the opportunity to surrender unwanted, unused or expired prescription drugs and other medications to law enforcement officers during National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day.
The drop-off point will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the front entrance to Lebanon City Hall on 735 Cumberland Street.
National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day, an effort of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, has removed more than 17.9 million pounds of unneeded medications from communities across the country over the last decade.
Last year, the DEA and its law enforcement partners collected nearly 600,000 pounds of expired and unneeded prescription drugs at 4,675 collection sites across the nation.
According to a report published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a majority of people who use prescription medication for a nonmedical purpose obtained that medication from a family member or friend, the DEA said.
Removing unnecessary medications from the home can help prevent situations involving; not taking medication as intended or dosed; taking someone else’s prescription; and taking the medicine for euphoric effects rather than medicinal purposes.
"We encourage people to remove unnecessary medications from their home regularly and dispose of it at one of the nearly 17,000 permanent drug-drop boxes located in communities across the country," the DEA said in a press release. "Those locations can be found here.
"Safe medication disposal receptacles along with DEA Take Back events provide families easy, no-cost opportunities to get rid of unnecessary medicines stored in the home."
To find a drug take-back location near you, go here.