The Grandview Medical Center Police Department and the United States Drug Enforcement Agency are helping residents to rid their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused and unwanted prescription drugs. Grandview is hosting a prescription drug drop-off on Saturday, September 26 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the hospital’s main entrance at 405 West Grand Avenue in Dayton.

The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked. Only pills will be accepted – no sharps (needles, syringes), liquids, or boxes/bottles.

This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines in home cabinets are highly susceptible to misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental drug poisonings and overdoses. Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet.

Grandview police and the DEA urge you to dispose of your prescription drugs at drop-off locations because the usual methods for disposing of unused medicines – flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash – pose potential safety and health hazards.