Prescription Drug Take Back Day In Pewaukee April 29 To Raise Awareness Of Prescription Drug Abuse

PEWAUKEE - The Waukesha County Sheriff's Department and the Village of Pewaukee Police Department announced Sunday that it will hold a Prescription Drug Take-Back initiative Saturday, April 29, in cooperation with the Wisconsin Department of Justice to raise awareness of prescription drug abuse.

The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Pewaukee Police Department, 235 Hickory St., and aims to provide residents a safe disposal of prescription medication while educating the community on the dangers of abuse and improper storage and disposal of the medications.

“Proper drug disposal is one way to substantially reduce the abuse of prescription narcotic painkillers,” Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel said. “Storing potentially dangerous drugs in a secure location and disposing of them promptly after use will eliminate the number of people improperly using these substances.”

According to the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department, unused or expired prescriptions should never be flushed or poured down the drain, as water reclamation facilities aren't designed to remove all of them and trace amounts of pharmaceuticals are showing up in rivers and lakes around the world.

Residents are allowed to dispose of prescription and over-the-counter medications, ointments, patches, non-aerosol sprays, creams, vials, and pet medications.

Items that are not allowed: illegal drugs, needles/sharps, inhalers, aerosol cans, biohazardous material containing bodily fluid or blood, personal care products, household hazardous waste (paint, pesticides, oil, gas), and mercury thermometers.

Solid, non-liquid medications must be removed from their containers and disposed directly into the disposal box or a clear sealed plastic bag. Plastic pill containers will not be collected but the department will collect blister packages containing medication.