The City of Chula Vista Office of Sustainability, Chula Vista Police Department, and U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration will team up to provide the public an opportunity to dispose of unwanted prescription medication on Oct. 28 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The semi-annual Drug Take Back Day encourages residents to drop off expired, unused, or unwanted prescription drugs for disposal at the Public Works Facility at 1800 Maxwell Road, Chula Vista. The event is free, and anonymous.
In April 2023, Americans turned in 322 tons of prescription drugs at nearly 5,000 sites operated by the DEA and almost 4,500 of state and local law enforcement partners. The DEA, along with its law enforcement partners, has now collected 8,650 tons of expired, unused, and unwanted prescription medications since the inception of the National Prescription Drug Take Back Initiative in 2010. This 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 United States are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs. Medicines that are improperly disposed in the trash or toilet also pose an environmental hazard to people and animals.
In addition to the DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, there are many other ways to properly dispose of unwanted prescription drugs every day, including the 11,000 authorized collectors that are available all year long. For more information, visit the DEA’s year-round collection site locator at https://apps2.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/pubdispsearch/spring/main?execution=e1. For more information about the disposal of prescription drugs or the October 28 Take Back Day event, go to https://takebackday.dea.gov/.
