The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office announced on Monday that they’d collected 51 pounds of unneeded prescription drugs on National Prescription Drug Take Back Day. Held twice a year, the event encourages people to turn in prescription drugs that are expired or unused to law enforcement to prevent them from falling into the wrong hands.
The FCSO operated four take-back locations on Saturday, partnering with local Publix and Walmart locations to help facilitate the operation. The haul of 51 pounds will be taken to be destroyed safely so it can’t be accessed by those who would abuse the pills, or by children or pets who consume them unknowingly.
“I want to thank the community for helping us to dispose of unwanted and expired prescriptions properly and safely,” said Sheriff Rick Staly of the operation. “A special thanks to our partners, Publix and Walmart, and our deputies who assisted the community and staffed the drop-off locations.”
The Drug Enforcement Agency started National Prescription Drug Take Back Day to be held on the last Saturday of April and October to help drive up participation in regularly occurring drug take-back programs facilitated by local law enforcement agencies across the country. Flagler County has its own year-round collection station: the Flagler Beach Police Department operates a drug drop-off location at their station, located at 204 S Flagler Ave, Flagler Beach.
In the last Take Back Day in April 2024, the DEA reported that they’d collected 670.1k pounds of drugs across 4,869 locations in America. This weekend’s results have yet to be posted, but there’s good indication they’ll likely post numbers somewhere in the same ballpark.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration provides guidance on which drugs can be flushed and and what to do for those that can’t be, giving helpful guidance to those not sure of what to do with prescriptions they have lying around the house. Prescription drugs account for one of the most prevalent forms of drug abuse in the United States, with experts recommending securing even current medications while they’re in the home, and avoid sharing which prescriptions are on-hand.
