DEA: Bring In Old Prescription Drugs For 'Take Back Day'
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration was accepting old prescription drugs for disposal Saturday, the seventh National Prescription Drug Take Back Day.
DEA spokesman Rusty Payne said the take-back program will prevent abuse, misuse or theft, with prescription drug abuse becoming an epidemic. He said prescription painkillers in particular are "highly addictive across a broad demographic spectrum."
Thousands of collection sites across the country were to be open until 2 p.m. Saturday. A full list of locations nationwide can be found on the DEA.gov website or by calling (800) 882-9539.
Payne said the DEA wants to do anything it can to discourage prescription drug abuse, "particularly keeping people's medicine cabinets safe and free of these unnecessary medications."
He stressed there are no questions asked and no names taken, and it's "not a law enforcement operation." Any drug in pill form will be accepted, but not liquids, needles or syringes.
The three-year-old program has disposed of nearly 3 million pounds of potentially dangerous expired, unused or unwanted prescription drugs.
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