National Prescription Drug Take Back Day: Locations In Portsmouth

PORTSMOUTH, NH — If you have half-empty bottles of unused prescription drugs littering your bathroom shelves or medicine cabinet, mark your calendars for Saturday.

This year’s first National Prescription Drug Take Back Day will take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 24, giving residents of Portsmouth an opportunity to dispose of the medications safely before they end up in the wrong hands.

The federal Drug Enforcement Administration will host the 20th event in cooperation with law enforcement agencies. The service is free and anonymous. All pills will be accepted, but liquids, needles and sharps can’t be taken during this event.

Here's where to dispose of unused prescription drugs on National Prescription Drug Take Back Day:

• Portsmouth Police Department
• Newington Police Department
• Kittery Police Department
• Eliot Police Department
• Greenland Police Department
• Newmarket Police Department
• Stratham Police Department
• York Police Department — Yorkshire Commons
• Sentry Hill Assisted Living
• Hannaford Supermarket — York Police Department
• University Of New Hampshire Police Department
• University Of New Hampshire Health & Wellness — UNH Health & Wellness
• Hampton Police Department
• Dover Police Department

If you can’t make it there/to any of those locations, find a drug take-back site here.

According to the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, millions of people every year misuse prescription pain relievers, stimulants, tranquilizers and sedatives. Nearly 50,000 people in the United States died from opioid-involved overdoses that year.

The survey also showed that a majority of misused prescription drugs were obtained from family and friends, often from a home’s medicine cabinet.

The last drug take-back event was held in October 2020. During the event, partners collected nearly 985,400 pounds of unused prescription drugs nationwide, the largest amount ever collected in the program’s 10 years. More than 16,000 pounds were collected in The Granite State.

Nearly 13.7 million pounds of expired, unused and unwanted prescription medications have been collected since the program’s inception.

The Environmental Protection Agency offers guidance on items not accepted during take-back events, including the disposal of sharps and other medical waste. The Food and Drug Administration offers tips on getting rid of liquid medicines that are expired or no longer needed.

Given the ongoing pandemic, both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency also have tips on how to safely dispose of drugs without leaving home.