The Columbia Police Department (CPD) in partnership with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will host a ‘Prescription Drug Take Back Day’ on Saturday, October 29th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
This annual event offers free, anonymous disposal of unneeded medications at more than 4,000 local drop-off locations across the country.
Nationwide, drug overdose deaths are up 16 percent in the last year, claiming more than 290 lives every day.
According to a report published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, a majority of people who misused a prescription medication obtained the medicine from a family member or friend.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that in the United States, more than 106,000 people died as the result of a drug overdose in the 12-month period ending November 2021, marking the most drug-related deaths ever recorded, with opioid-related deaths accounting for 75 percent of all overdose deaths.
Drop off your unwanted, unused, or expired medications including tablets, capsules, patches, and other solid forms of prescription drugs at CPD Headquarters. An officer will be on hand to assist you. A Drug Take Back locked receptacle is available 24 hours a day, all year long.
Liquids (including intravenous solutions), syringes and other sharps, and illicit drugs CANNOT be accepted. DEA will accept vaping devices and cartridges provided lithium batteries are removed.