The Dalton Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration will give the public another opportunity to dispose of expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs on Saturday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Participants may bring their medications for disposal to Kroger at 1365 West Walnut Ave. The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.
Last April, Americans turned in 552,161 pounds—276 tons—of prescription drugs at over 5,600 sites operated by the DEA and nearly 4,300 state and local law enforcement partners. In its four previous Take Back events, DEA and its partners took in over 1.5 million pounds—nearly 775 tons—of pills.
Four days after the first event, Congress passed the Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act of 2010, which amends the Controlled Substances Act to allow an “ultimate user” of controlled substance medications to dispose of them by delivering them to entities authorized by the Attorney General to accept them. The Act also allows the Attorney General to authorize long term care facilities to dispose of their residents’ controlled substances in certain instances. DEA is drafting regulations to implement the Act. Until new regulations are in place, local law enforcement agencies like the Dalton Police Department and the DEA will continue to hold prescription drug take-back events every few months.