A new medication drop box location has been added to Mesa County. Palisade Pharmacy, 707 37 3/10 Rd B, Palisade, CO 81526, is the first location to install a drop box on the eastern end of the Grand Valley. The new site is an outcome of a partnership fostered by the Opioid Response Group. Mesa County residents are encouraged to take advantage of this new drop box during the DEA Take Back on Saturday, April 27th.
Recent studies report sixteen percent of Mesa County high school students ever using prescription pain medication without a doctor’s prescription, half of the people who said they misused prescription pain relievers reported obtaining the medication from a friend or relative for free, and approximately five percent of people reported taking medication from a friend or relative without asking.
“How you dispose of unused and expired medications does make a difference, and we know accessibility is key. The new location in Palisade will make medication disposal more accessible for community members on the East end of the Valley,” Mesa County Public Health (MCPH) Epidemiology Program Manager Heidi Dragoo said.
Keep these tips in mind as you dispose of unwanted or expired medications:
- Keep your medicines in the bottle when you return them.
- Don’t crush your medicine – doing so can create a dangerously high dose that could accidentally be taken in through skin contact or breathing.
- If you can’t get to a take-back location or have a liquid medication to dispose of, follow these steps:
- Remove the label or cross out any identifying information on the container.
- Mix the medicine with something that can’t be eaten – like kitty litter, coffee grounds or saw dust – in a sealable bag, empty can or another container that won’t leak.
- Wrap that container in newspaper or a plain brown bag to conceal its contents and place it into your trash on the day your trash is collected.
- Remember, flushing your medications or throwing them down the drain or in the trash aren’t safe options.
- Medicine isn’t always completely cleaned from our water at the sewage treatment plant. Medications you flush or toss into your drain could end up polluting our waters, hurting our environment or harming our food and water supply.
- Human medicine is the leading cause of pet poisonings, and those frequently happen when pets find medications in the garbage.
Click here for additional medication drop boxes in Mesa County.
Members of the media should call or text Diana Williams at (970) 697-4611 or visit health.mesacounty.us for more information.