Longport Police will “take back” your unwanted drugs.
The Longport Police Department will be participating in the Drug Enforcement Administration’s National Pharmaceutical Take-Back initiative, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 26 at the Police Department, 2305 Atlantic Ave. The entrance is located in the bayside parking area off 24th Avenue.
The initiative seeks to prevent increased pill abuse and theft through the collection of potentially dangerous expired, unused and unwanted prescription drugs.
Previous initiatives hosted by the department have yielded hundreds of pounds of pharmaceuticals, according to Public Information Officer Ray Burgan.
Longport Police will also continue to utilize Project Medicine Drop after the event for the community to safely surrender unwanted medication throughout the year.
This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue, Burgan said.
Many Americans are not aware that medications that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse and abuse. Prescription drug abuse in the United States is increasing at alarming rates, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to their availability.
“Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from home medicine cabinets,” he said in a release.
According to the 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 9.9 million Americans misused controlled prescription drugs. In addition, many Americans do not know how to properly dispose of their unused medications, often flushing them down the toilet or throwing them away…both potential safety and health hazards.
Once collected, the unwanted pharmaceuticals will be turned over to the DEA, which will safely destroy the drugs.
For more information regarding the National Take Back Initiative, see http://takebackday.dea.gov/ or contact Sgt. Ray Burgan or Ptl. Wright at the Longport Police Department’s Evidence Unit 609-822-2141. Emails can be sent through the longportpd.org website.
