The Indian Health Service remains committed to expanding access to safe medication disposal services in its hospitals and health centers to ensure unwanted and unused medications are promptly removed from the home and community. Currently, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) hosts National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day twice each year on the last Saturday of every April and October, but for IHS, “take-back” day is every day.
So, how do these programs work? There are several ways. IHS pharmacies can choose to offer at-home disposal kits or mail-back envelopes. These options are typically low-cost and provided to patients at the pharmacy window for when they need to dispose of small amounts of medications that are no longer used or needed. Patients are provided a special sealed, tamper-evident envelope that can be handed to a postal carrier or dropped off at a U.S. Post Office for delivery.
A second popular option is for IHS sites to register with the DEA as year-round drop-off locations. This requires a little more work and expense for the pharmacy program, but essentially eliminates patient barriers given how easy it is to use. If you do not see a large blue receptacle at your IHS pharmacy, please ask the pharmacy staff where and how you can safely dispose of your medications. You can also visit the DEA’s Controlled Substance Public Disposal Locations finder to locate the closest authorized collector.
The Cass Lake IHS Pharmacy Department uses the Year-Round Drop Offs option. The system is similar to a post office drop box; a patient simply places their medications inside the secure container and walks away. These systems also provide an opportunity to increase education and raise awareness of the dangers of prescription medication misuse and the importance of safe medication disposal in the community.
Of course, the safest way to dispose of medications is at take-back events or by using a registered collector drop box, but there are also environmentally safe options that can be used at home. Check the FDA website for a list of medications that are safe to flush down the toilet.
Offering a variety of safe medication disposal options is an important step when creating or expanding services across Indian Country. Safe disposal not only removes medications from the community, reducing the potential for misuse, but also ensures medications are disposed of in a safe manner.
Please visit the IHS National Committee on Heroin, Opioids, and Pain Efforts (HOPE Committee) medication disposal for more information on ways to dispose of unwanted medication.
