Joint Release:
St. Mary’s County Government
St. Mary’s County Health Department
LEONARDTOWN, MARYLAND (October 15, 2020) – Do you have expired, unused, and unwanted medications or paper documents with personal information that you’d like to purge? This is your chance to dispose of them safely! Bring your items for disposal to National Take Back Day on Saturday, Oct. 24 from 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. at the Governmental Center, located at 41770 Baldridge Street in Leonardtown, MD.
Shredding services and medication collection for pills, liquids, and needles will be offered. This event is free and open to the public.
Masks will be required at all times while attending this event for the safety of the community and employees assisting during this event. Please remain in your vehicle once on site and adhere to instructions from attendants. Please place documents or expired medications in your trunk or truck bed to lessen the chance of exposure.
These initiatives address a vital public health and safety 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.
National Take Back Day in St. Mary’s County is a collaborative event of the St. Mary’s County Health Department, St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office and St. Mary’s County Department of Aging & Human Services.
For more information, please visit www.smchd.org/disposal or contact the St. Mary’s County Health Department at 301-475-4330 or smchd.healthdept@maryland.gov.
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