Twice a year, the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) has a National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day. The next one is Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Anyone in the valley can take unused prescription drugs to the Carbondale Police Department, which will dispose of them safely.
Carbondale Police Chief Gene Shilling says his department can take any prescription drug. Don’t flush them down the toilet, he says, because that can endanger water quality.
Last year, Coloradans turned in over 8 and a half tons of prescription drugs. At least 50 or 60 pounds of that came from Carbondale alone.
The DEA’s take back days provide an opportunity to prevent drug addiction and overdose deaths by getting unused prescription drugs out of homes.
According to the 2017 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 6 million Americans misused controlled prescription drugs, the majority of which were obtained from the homes of family and friends.
