- Home
- Environment/Energy
- Environmental Programs and Projects
- Solid Waste and Recycling
- Unused Medicine Disposal Resources
Unused Medicine Disposal Resources
Drug Disposal Kits Available
As outlined in a news release from the Virginia Attorney General's office on November 10, 2016, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse:
- Half of young people who used heroin got started by abusing prescription opioids.
- One in fifteen individuals who misuse prescription opioid painkillers will try heroin within ten years.
- The number of opioid prescriptions has nearly tripled over the last 25 years, and the United States now accounts from nearly 100 percent of the world's hydrocodone prescriptions and 81 percent for oxycodone.
- The number of Americans abusing heroin nearly doubled from 2007 to 2012, with nearly 700,000 now abusing heroin.
- Prescription opioid overdose deaths have risen 44 percent between 2007 and 2015, from 399 deaths to 576.
- Heroin overdose deaths have risen more than 600 percent between 2010 and 2015, from 48 to 342.
- Fentanyl deaths have risen 367 percent from 2007 to 2015, from 48 to 224.
- More than 500 people went to a Virginia emergency room from a heroin overdose in the first four months of 2016, a 250% increase over 2015.
Permanent Prescription Drug Disposal Locations
To help residents dispose of unused/expired medicines, the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) maintains a database of permanent locations where you can dispose of unwanted prescription drugs and other items.
At these locations you can drop off the following:
- Prescriptions
- Prescription Patches
- Prescription Medicines
- Prescription Ointments
- Over-the-counter medications
- Vitamins
- Samples
- Medications for pets
The following are NOT accepted:
- Thermometers
- Hydrogen Peroxide
- Inhalers
- Aerosol Cans
- Ointments, Lotions or Fluids
- Medication from Businesses
- Needles/EpiPens (Sharps)
Other On-Line Resources
US Food & Drug Administration
Disposal of Unused Medicines: What You Should Know
US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
Drug Disposal Information
Virginia Department of Health
How to Dispose of Unused Medicine
Treatment Information
The Commonwealth of Virginia provides a web site intended as a comprehensive resource for all Virginians in the fight against opioid misuse and overdose throughout the Commonwealth.