Moorhead, MN – On April 30th the Moorhead Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will give the public another opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs. Through a partnership with the Moorhead Walgreen Stores we will be accepting your medications for disposal on Saturday April 30th. The Downtown Walgreens located at 8th Street and Main Avenue will participate from 10:00 a.m. to Noon. The Walgreen’s located at 8th Street and 30th Avenue South will participate from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked. Pills can be left in a bottle or put in a zip lock bag. Liquids should be sealed in a bottle and secured in a zip lock bag. We ask that no needles are put into the lock box.
Last September, Americans turned in 242,000 pounds—121 tons—of prescription drugs at nearly 4,100 sites operated by the DEA and more than 3,000 state and local law enforcement partners.
This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. 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 a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet. In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines—flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash—both pose potential safety and health hazards.
