ST. LOUIS– On April 30, 2022, communities across the country demonstrated their support for DEA’s annual National Prescription Drug Take Back Day by dropping off more than 720,000 pounds of unneeded medications at 5,144 collection sites. Since 2010, DEA, along with its law enforcement partners, has collected nearly 16 million pounds of unneeded prescription medications.
DEA’s St. Louis Division collected a total of 38,592 pounds. Missouri residents turned in 26,879 pounds; Kansas, 7,326 pounds; and southern Illinois, 4,385 pounds. That is slightly more than the November 2021 Take Back Day collection of 37,189 pounds. Law enforcement organizations manned drop-off sites throughout the region, with a total of 264 participating.
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“National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is an important part of DEA’s efforts to fight the overdose epidemic and save lives,” said DEA Administrator Anne Milgram. “I encourage everyone across the country to dispose of unneeded medications throughout the year to help keep our communities safe and healthy.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that in the United States, over 107,000 people died as the result of a drug overdose last year. This figure means that someone in the United States is dying of a drug overdose every five minutes.
Take Back Day events provide easy, no-cost opportunities to dispose of medicines stored in the home that are susceptible to abuse and theft. There are many permanent drug-drop boxes located in communities across the country. A list of permanent locations can be found here.
Complete results for DEA’s spring National Prescription Drug Take Back Day are available at www.DEATakeBack.com. DEA’s next National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is scheduled for October 29, 2022.
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