Keep Your Home Safe with Prescription Drug Disposal Kits

The North Reading Police Department and North Reading Community Impact Team’s Youth Substance Use Prevention Coalition are urging residents to continue to safely dispose of unused and outdated prescription medication. Typically, the main avenue for disposal is to drop your unused prescriptions at the North Reading Police Department’s Rx Take-Back Kiosk. In fact, over one thousand pounds were collected in this way in the past two years. Although the Rx Take-Back Kiosk is still available 24/7 in the police lobby, residents who are concerned about leaving their houses, have another option.

To encourage people to dispose of unused drugs, the Community Impact Team is offering free drug deactivation bags. These bags contain chemicals to render drugs inactive and are suitable for pills, patches, and liquid medications. The sealable bags can then be disposed of safely in the trash. Drug-Free Communities Grant Project Coordinator Amy Luckiewicz explained, “We want to make sure these drugs are getting out of homes safely, and flushing them down the toilet causes damage to our environment.” She continued, “This is a great solution for people who can’t get to the Rx Take-Back Kiosk.” Police Chief Michael Murphy added, “Our drug take-back program has been a huge success for the past few years. Of course, we’re concerned about keeping that program active during the quarantine restrictions. All of our programs are adapting, and we want to make sure that people have a safe way to continue to rid their homes of unused prescriptions.”

Starting this week, deactivation kits will be delivered to all Meals on Wheels clients in partnership with the O’Leary Senior Center. Deactivation kits are also available at the Food Pantry, and can be delivered to home mailboxes. To receive a free drug deactivation bag, contact Amy Luckiewicz at coalition@northreadingma.gov or call (978)357-5054.