Is it okay to flush medications down the drain? Absolutely not. Putting unused medications down the drain or flushing them down the toilet may expose drinking water to the chemicals. Many of them cause ecological harm, and our current sewage treatment systems are not effective in removing all drugs from entering our waterways.
The Drug Enforcement Agency has elected to once again host the National Drug Take Back initiative in 2016. The event is scheduled for April 30, 2016 from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. and will once again be held at Plano East Senior High, Plano Senior High, Plano West Senior High, and Clark High
schools.
The National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day addresses vital public safety and health issues. Many Americans are not aware that medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly
susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs.
Studies show that many abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet. 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 - posing safety and environmental hazards. Please join us in this initiative to reduce the risks that expired, unused, or unwanted
medications pose in our community and to the environment.
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