AROOSTOOK COUNTY, Maine — National Prescription Drug-Take Back Day will be this Saturday, April 29, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. All Aroostook County law enforcement agencies will participate.
During the last take-back day Oct. 22, 2016, Maine police departments collected 24,260 pounds of medications. In Aroostook County, law enforcement collected 1,610.3 pounds of medications.
In an effort to reduce access and abuse of prescription drug abuse, all 11 police departments in Aroostook County, the Aroostook County Sheriff’s Office and Maine State Police Troop E are available to receive and serve as prescription disposal sites all year long. This service is free and anonymous, and no questions are asked.
According to the Maine Youth Health Integrated Survey, in 2015, 9.4 percent of high school students reported using prescription drugs without a doctor’s prescription in their lifetime, and 3.8 percent reported using in the past 30 days.
The24/7 Prescription Drug Take-Back 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 the home medicine cabinet. 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—both pose potential safety and health hazards.
Anyone who has any unused or unwanted prescription drugs is urged to bring them to their local police department for proper disposal.
