Hundreds of Families Bring Back Unused Medications for National Prescription Drug Take Back Day
On Saturday, October 27, Michigan residents in 32 counties had a chance to get opioids and other unused and expired prescription medicines out of their medicine cabinets through 60 simultaneous events held around the state. The collective effort resulted in hundreds of families safely removing over 3,000 pounds of medication, including approximately 40,000 opioids, from their homes while also increasing awareness in the community about safe medication disposal.
The statewide effort is made possible by local partnerships with the University of Michigan’s Michigan Opioid Prescribing Engagement Network (Michigan OPEN) and healthcare organizations, law enforcement and community organizations. The Fall 2018 event doubled the amount of Take Back locations from the Spring 2018 event.
Michigan OPEN works with partners to hold community opioid and medication take back events twice a year. Consistent with findings from the Spring Event, when participants were asked how they disposed of medications prior to coming to the Take Back Event, more than 50% answered, “did not dispose,” highlighting the continuing need for these community events.
Interested in bringing a take back event to your community in spring 2019?