Safe Medication Disposal

Do you have unused or expired medications sitting in your medicine cabinet? Don’t know what to do with these medications?

Here are 5 great reasons to motivate you to clean out your medicine cabinet and safely dispose of your unused or expired prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medications:

o   Over 78,000 children under 5 years of age are treated for accidental drug overdose per year.¹

o   Prescription drugs are more commonly abused than ecstasy, heroin, crack/cocaine and methamphetamines combined in adolescents 12 to 17 years of age.²

o   Drug overdose death rates more than doubled from 1999-2010 in those aged 10 to 19 years.²

o   Nearly one-third of people age 12 years and older who used illicit drugs for the first time in 2010 began by using prescription drugs non-medically.³

o   Drugs such as antibiotics, steroids, pain killers, estrogens, blood pressure medicines, and antidepressants were detected in 80% of water samples in 139 streams across 30 states and may be causing harm to fish and other wildlife.⁴

Unused and expired medications may be in the form of capsules, pills, inhalers/aerosols, creams, etc. Improper storage of these medications can lead to accidental use of the wrong medication, overdose (especially in the case of children and pets), or drug abuse by others in the household. A majority of patients continue to dispose of these medications in the trash or flush them down the toilet or sink. The Illinois Environment Protection Agency (IEPA) recommends against flushing a majority of medications down the toilet or sink. These medications wind up in our drinking water system through improper disposal and natural excretion, and our water treatment facilities do not have the expertise to remove medications from our drinking water supply. Several new changes are being implemented for the safe disposal of unused and expired medications, including an expansion in drug take-back programs across the nation.

Medication disposal dos and don’ts:

Dos:

Do reduce pharmaceutical waste whenever possible. Finish the full course of prescribed medications as recommended by your doctor or pharmacist, and only buy as much as you need.

Do store medications safely out of reach of children, pets, and others to prevent accidental overdose, misuse, or abuse.

Do take unused/expired medications to a local take-back program or mail them to a collection agency. To find a participating program:

·      Call your local police department, village, or city administrative office.

·      Check to see if your local pharmacies participate in the national “TakeAway Environmental Return System” mail-in medication disposal program.

·      Call (217) 524-3300 or visit the IEPA website at http://epa.state.il.us/medication-disposal/ for additional information and frequently asked questions.

·      For one-day collection events and long-term collection facilities, contact:

o   City of Chicago, 1150 N. North Branch on Goose Island, Phone: 311 or 312-744-7672

o   Rockford, 3333 Kishwaukee, Rock River Reclamation District, Phone:815-987-5570

o   Naperville, 1971 Brookdale Rd, Fire Station #4, Phone:630-420-6095

·      If you live in Lake County, contact the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County (SWALCO), Phone:847-336-9340

·      Visit the Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County (SWANCC) website for programs at over 20 Chicagoland member communities http://swancc.org/programs/pharmaceuticalsharps-disposal

·      Follow these general tips for medication disposal at participating take-back programs:

o   Keep medications in original containers but blacken-out any personal information with a permanent marker.

o   Acceptable items include: unused/expired prescription medications and expired OTC products.

o   Unacceptable items include: Pharmaceutical controlled substances (e.g. Norco, Vicodin, hydrocodone, oxycodone etc.).

o   Check with your local program for guidance on acceptable/unacceptable items.

·      For pharmaceutical controlled substances disposal, visit:

o   DEA website for designated take-back days and a list of pharmaceutical controlled substances:

http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback/index.html

o   Save A Star’s drug disposal program website for location of disposal boxes and a list of all acceptable items:

http://www.saveastar.org/pages/sas_drugdisposal.html

Don’ts:

Don’t share medications with friends and family.

Don’t store medications in the bathroom as this may compromise the integrity of the product.

Don’t flush medications down the toilet or sink or dispose of in the trash as they end up in our environment and drinking water supply.

Don’t burn medications as this may release toxic fumes and lead to air pollution.

If you do not have access to a local take-back or mail-in program, the IEPA recommends disposing of unused/expired medicines in the trash to avoid accidental overdose, misuse, and abuse by following the steps below:

·      Remove medications from original containers or blacken-out any identifying information on the label

·      Mix medication with a small amount of alcohol or water to dissolve or grind them up with kitty litter or coffee grounds

·      Place them in a plastic bag, and dispose of them in the trash

Drug abuse and misuse of prescription and OTC medications has become a significant problem. The medicines we take are increasing ending up in our environment and may be causing harm to wildlife. The previous recommendation to flush unwanted medications down the toilet or sink or dispose of in the trash may no longer be effective in addressing this problem. It is currently recommended to dispose of expired and unused medications at local or mail-in medication collection programs.

Protect your loved ones, drinking water sources, and the earth--dispose of your medications in a safe and environmentally-friendly manner.

References:

1.     Nettesheim T, Boehme SE, Malloy EH. Disposal of unwanted medications. Illinois-Indiana Sea-Grant website. http://www.istc.illinois.edu/special_projects/ppcp-env/1315-boehme.pdf. Accessed October 31, 2013. 

2.     Disposal of unwanted or unused pharmaceuticals fact sheet. IEPA’s medication disposal website. http://www.epa.state.il.us/medication-disposal/facts.html. Accessed October 30, 2013.

3.     A response to the epidemic of prescription drug abuse. Whitehouse drug policy website. Published April 2011. http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/ondcp/Fact_Sheets/prescription_drug_abuse_fact_sheet_4-25-11.pdf. Accessed October 31, 2013.

4.     Results from the 2011 national survey on drug use and health: Summary of national findings, NSDUH series H-44, HHS Publication No. (SMA) 12-4713. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2012.

5.     A national action plan for child injury prevention: reducing poisoning injuries in children. CDC website. http://www.cdc.gov/safechild/NAP/overviews/poison.html. Updated April 1, 2013. Accessed October 31, 2013.

6.     Barnes KK, Kolpin DW, Meyer MT, et al. U.S. geological survey website. 2002. http://toxics.usgs.gov/pubs/OFR-02-94/index.html. Accessed October 29, 2013.

7.     How to dispose of unwanted medicine and personal care products. Illinois-Indiana Sea-Grant and University of Illinois Extension website. http://web.extension.illinois.edu/unusedmeds/. Accessed October 30, 2013.

8.     Medication disposal programs offered across the nation. NABP website. http://www.nabp.net/news/medication-disposal-programs-offered-across-the-nation. Updated August 26, 2011. Accessed October 30, 2013.

Masooma Razvi

Doctorate of Pharmacy Candidate, 2014