Information for Community Organizations that Sponsor Collections of Unwanted Household Medicines
Community organizations can facilitate drug take-backs in two ways:
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Mail-back envelopes. Community organizations may purchase mail-back envelopes and provide them to households to encourage them to mail their unwanted household medicines for destruction rather than placing them in the household trash or flushing them.
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Drug take-back events. Community organizations may coordinate a pharmaceutical take-back event. These are often one-day or short-term collection events. It is important to understand that while community groups may sponsor the events, DEA regulations require that law enforcement be present during these events.
To find out what law enforcement has to do with the collected medications, visit our Information for Law Enforcement Agencies that Collect Unwanted Household Medicines webpage.