Nearly 90K pounds of unused, expired prescription drugs collected on Drug Take Back Day

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin’s Drug Take Back Day held in October was the largest in the country this year, bringing in nearly 90,000 pounds of prescription drugs.

Throughout the state, 230 law enforcement agencies held Drug Take Back events on Oct. 24 to encourage people to dispose of their unused or expired medicines. In total, 89,982 pounds of prescription medications were collected.

“Thank you to the many Wisconsinites who safely disposed of unused and unwanted medications, making Wisconsin’s Drug Take Back the most successful in the nation,” Attorney General Josh Kaul said. “Your efforts help with the fight against substance-use disorder by ensuring that those unused medications won’t be diverted.”

There are 485 permanent drug disposal boxes located at law enforcement agencies across the state. They are accessible year-round.

Once collected, the drugs were secured for transportation to Covanta Energy Corporation in Indianapolis where they will be incinerated.

Law enforcement officials say unused or expired medications should never be flushed or poured down the drain because water reclamation facilities are not designed to remove all of them.

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