Granite Staters clean out their medicine cabinets for ‘Drug Take Back Day’
The time to start spring cleaning is underway, but the Drug Enforcement Agency wants to know the last time you cleaned out your medicine cabinet.That’s the goal of Drug Take Back Day, with the latest edition of the nationwide event held on Saturday. Throughout the day, the DEA partners with police departments across New Hampshire to help residents throw away potentially dangerous drugs safely, while preventing any risks they could create.One department hosting a Take Back Day drive was the Nashua Police Department, where officers helped anyone driving through the Department of Public Works drop off bags of medications set for disposal.Accepted items include expired or unwanted medications, supplements, and more, without any questions asked.”Years back, I was flushing them down (the toilet),” said Nashua resident Conrad Dionne, driving through to make a drop-off. “You can’t do that today. And you shouldn’t. So, this is a better alternative. Instead of throwing it down wherever or disposing it so something can happen, it’s a little bit easier to bring it here and let somebody who knows what they’re doing dispose of it,” said Ed Lastowka, also visiting the designated site next to the Police Department.>> Download the free WMUR app to get updates on the go: Apple | Google Play < NASHUA, N.H. — The time to start spring cleaning is underway, but the Drug Enforcement Agency wants to know the last time you cleaned out your medicine cabinet. That’s the goal of Drug Take Back Day, with the latest edition of the nationwide event held on Saturday. Throughout the day, the DEA partners with police departments across New Hampshire to help residents throw away potentially dangerous drugs safely, while preventing any risks they could create. One department hosting a Take Back Day drive was the Nashua Police Department, where officers helped anyone driving through the Department of Public Works drop off bags of medications set for disposal. Accepted items include expired or unwanted medications, supplements, and more, without any questions asked. “Years back, I was flushing them down (the toilet),” said Nashua resident Conrad Dionne, driving through to make a drop-off. “You can’t do that today. And you shouldn’t. So, this is a better alternative. Instead of throwing it down wherever or disposing it so something can happen, it’s a little bit easier to bring it here and let somebody who knows what they’re doing dispose of it,” said Ed Lastowka, also visiting the designated site next to the Police Department. >> Download the free WMUR app to get updates on the go: Apple | Google Play << Citing the opioid epidemic, organizers see this as another way to mitigate the risks that come with accessibility to medications. The DEA then takes the items handed in and gets rid of them in a safe manner. “It’s very important to get these materials out of your home and into a proper recycling system so they can be disposed of and not be a threat to people,” said AMR Regional Director Chris Stawasz. The day is part of an effort to keep opioid overdose deaths on a downward trend in the state. Data from the New Hampshire Drug Monitoring Initiative, a program that’s part of the Department of Health and Human Services, shows the total number of those deaths has gone down in the past three years. The latest data shows overdose deaths decreased 34% from 2023 to 2024, with a 39% decrease for opioid deaths. Overall, pharmaceutical cases analyzed are also sinking, as data is compiled from the previous year. Out of the thousands of pounds of medications police departments like Nashua’s accept, that means fewer risks to those who could potentially misuse them. That especially applies to families, when children could accidentally ingest or come in contact with a dangerous medication. “If you have young children, or if you have kids that are over visiting, you want to make sure that those things are not accessible to them,” Stawasz said. Anyone unable to visit a Take Back Day location can call their local police departments to find out if they have a drug disposal bin, or where to find one. No Byline Policy
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