Bonney Lake Police Participating In Drug Take Back Day

BONNEY LAKE, WA — If you've got expired or unwanted medication in your house, the perfect opportunity to ditch the drugs is coming up this weekend.

The Bonney Lake Police Department says it will be participating in the DEA's National Prescription Drug Take Back Day this Saturday, April 24.

Police will be accepting drug drop-offs — no questions asked — from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Public Safety Building at 18421 Veterans Memorial Dr E.

National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is an organized effort to crack down on the opioid epidemic by safely disposing of unused medication, thus keeping the pills out of the hands of drug users. According to organizers, the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that 9.7 million Americans misused prescription pain relievers, 5.9 million more misused prescription tranquilizers or sedatives, and 4.9 misused stimulants in 2019 alone. Of those misused drugs, the majority were taken from family and friends, often pilfered from home medicine cabinet, the DEA says.

The DEA's last drug take back event in October collected a total 492.7 tons of drugs at 4,587 collection sites across the country.