Members of the UCF community can hand over unused, unwanted and expired prescription drugs with no questions asked Wednesday, April 20.
UCF’s 7th-annual Drug Take Back Day will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. inside the Student Union.
The event, led by the UCF Police Department and Student Health Services in cooperation with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, gives people an opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by properly disposing of potentially dangerous drugs.
The service is free and anonymous, and pills, inhalers and ointments are welcome. Pet medication also will be accepted.
The event leads up to the DEA’s national Prescription Drug Take Back-Day Saturday, April 30. UCF will host the event early to accommodate students’ schedules. UCF Police will store all the turned in drugs until the DEA picks them up.
In previous Take Back events nationwide from 2010 to 2014, 4,823,251 pounds– or 2,411 tons– of drugs were collected.
The initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue.
Rates of prescription drug abuse and accidental poisonings and overdoses in the U.S. are alarmingly high, and studies show that a majority of these drugs are obtained from family and friends.
The DEA will incinerate all collected items, which is the safest way to destroy expired or unneeded drugs, keeping them out of the hands of abusers and protecting our waterways and landfills.
UCF regularly collects unwanted pills and patches at permanent drug take-back boxes located on the first floor of the Student Union and in the pharmacy of the Health Center. UCF Police collects items from the boxes and stores them until they are picked up by the DEA.
For additional information about the DEA initiative, including other local drop-off sites, visit https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback/ [1].