Getting Rid of stuff
Safe Disposal of Unwanted Medicine
What happens to prescription or over-the-counter medicines that are brought home, but for one reason or another, end up unused? Medicines that are flushed or tossed in the trash can end up in lakes, rivers, and drinking water. This poses a risk to people, animals, and the environment.
Do you have medicine you no longer need?
- Don’t flush it!
- Bring it to a local medicine take-back program.
- If there isn’t a take-back program available:
- Mix medicine with cat litter or coffee grounds in a sealable container such as a coffee can before throwing it in the trash.
- Mark out any personal information before recycling your pill bottle.
You can see our 15 second message that is running on the CBS large screen in Times Square until March 31, 2012:
IISG has developed a series of toolkits and initiatives to help communities, schools and individuals start and promote programs for safe disposal of unwanted medicine.
- For citizens and community officials looking for more information, see our Disposal of Unwanted Medicines: A Resource for Action in Your Community toolkit.
- Teachers and students can find information about classroom opportunities on our education page, Getting Rid of Stuff.
