RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — It’s time to clean up that medicine cabinet! If you have any leftover medicine or prescription drugs that you need to get rid of Saturday, Oct. 28, National Drug Take Back Day is the event for you.
Multiple counties across Central Virginia are participating in the country-wide event which will kick off at 10 a.m. and last until 2 p.m.
Chesterfield and Henrico County Police Departments are partnering with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in this year’s national event. Both counties will have multiple locations where people can go to dispose of their unwanted or expired medication.
Event locations
In Henrico you can drop off your unwanted or expired medication at three separate locations:
- Henrico Public Safety Building — located at 7721 E. Parham Road
- Henrico Fairfield Library — located at 1401 N. Laburnum Ave.
- Wegmans — located at 12200 Wegmans Blvd.
Chesterfield residents can drop off their unwanted medications at the Kroger on Midlothian Turnpike.
The Hanover County Sheriff’s Department is hosting its event tomorrow at the Kroger located at 6335 Mechanicsville Turnpike.
Over in Petersburg residents have multiple locations to choose from:
- Walmart — located at 3500 South Crater Road
- Petersburg Police Department — located at 3700 East Tabb St.
- Eastside Enhancement Center — located at 7301 Boydton Plank Road
If you live in Richmond, you can take your meds to:
- VCU Police Department — located at 1201 Broad Rock Blvd.
- The University of Richmond Police Department — located at 490 Westhampton Way
- The VA Dept. of Veteran Affairs — located at 901 North Lombardy St.
Organizers say this event is all about disposing of medication safely.
According to the DEA, Virginia had more than 144 collection sites for the last drug take back event in April. Nationally the event saw more than 663,000 pounds of unused and expired medicine collected.
Drug Disposal Kits
In addition to the drop-off event, some residents will have the option to get rid of unwanted medications with free drug disposal kits.
The kits are pouches that can be used to deactivate medications.
The kit works by placing unused medication inside and then filling the pouch with warm water sealing it and waiting for 30 seconds. After thirty seconds Shake the pouch and dispose of it as you would normal trash. Residents are encouraged to call ahead to confirm availability.
