Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2011 | 8:38 p.m.
A successful prescription drug drop-off event last year prompted Henderson Police to install permanent boxes in several locations where residents can discard medications.
Henderson Police said the bright yellow prescription drug drop-off boxes will be in the lobbies of the following locations:
• Henderson Police Main Station, 223 Lead Street (Open every day 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.)
• Henderson Police West Substation, 300 S. Green Valley Parkway (Open every day 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.)
• North Community Henderson Police Station, 225 E. Sunset Road (Open every day 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.)
• Henderson Police Community Relations Unit inside the Galleria mall at Sunset, 1300 W. Sunset Road (Open weekdays 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.)
• Henderson Detention Center, 18 E. Basic Road (Open every day 8 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.)
Authorities said the boxes, where people can safely and anonymously get rid of medications, will be regularly emptied. The drugs then will be incinerated.
“We encourage all residents to look through their medicine cabinets and join us to safely dispose of any old or unneeded prescription medications,” Henderson Police Chief Jutta Chambers said in a statement. “I know that this effort has the potential to prevent a tragedy.”
Needles, syringes, liquids and powders will not be accepted in the boxes, police said. Pills should be placed in containers or bags.
Authorities blame easy access to medications in friends’ and families’ homes, in part, for fueling the prescription drug epidemic.
The Drug Enforcement Administration said 6,027 people each day abused prescription pain relievers for the first time in 2009. Fifty-six percent of teens believed prescription drugs were easier to obtain than illicit narcotics, according to the DEA.
The prescription drug abuse surge led to the DEA’s creation of the National Prescription Drug Take Back Day. During the first two events — in September 2010 and April — authorities collected more than 309 tons of pills nationwide.
The third national Take Back Day is from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 29. Find the nearest collection site by visiting the DEA’s website.
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