DEA encourages communities to make every day Take Back Day

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has launched a new campaign encouraging the public to make Every Day Take Back Day  y utilizing year-round collection sites to dispose of unneeded and unwanted medications.

DEA has now registered a record 17,000 pharmacies as authorized collectors to help Americans dispose of unused prescription drugs any day of the year. These safe disposal receptacles, in addition to DEA’s annual Take Back Day events, provide the public with an easy, no-cost opportunity to anonymously dispose of medications that are no longer needed.  

For more than a decade, DEA has worked with state and local law enforcement partners to host National Prescription Drug Take Back Days each year to help Americans rid their homes of unneeded medications. The Take Back program has received an overwhelming response from communities across the country, according to the DEA.

In 2023, DEA collected more than 1.2 million pounds of unneeded medications at more than 4,600 sites nationwide during our two, one-day events.

“DEA has worked closely with the registrant community to dramatically increase the number of permanent disposal sites accessible to Americans.  As a result, members of the public can now go to any one of 17,000 pharmacies across the nation to dispose of unused prescription medications any day of the year,” said DEA Administrator Anne Milgram. “I encourage everyone to take advantage of these collection sites and make every day Take Back Day.”

Locally, drop-off sites are located at Sikeston Department of Public Safety headquarters, 201 S. Kingshighway in Sikeston; CVS Pharmacy, 120 S. Main, in Sikeston; and Key Drugs, 1007 W. Business US Highway 60, in Dexter, according to the DEA’s website.

Take Back Day has helped Americans easily rid their homes of unwanted or expired medications. These medications can be a gateway to addiction and have helped fuel the opioid epidemic. According to a report published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a majority of people who use a prescription medication for a nonmedical purpose obtained that medication from a family member or friend.  Removing unnecessary medications from the home can help prevent situations involving not taking medication as intended or dosed; taking someone else’s prescription; and taking the medicine for euphoric effects rather than medicinal purposes.

Make Every Day Take Back Day by visiting https://www.dea.gov/everyday-takeback-day to find a pharmacy, hospital, or business with a DEA-registered year-round collection. In addition, many local police departments provide year-round drug disposal boxes.