Drug Take-Back Day In Napa County: Where To Drop Off Medications

NAPA COUNTY, CA —The police departments of Napa, St. Helena, Calistoga, Yountville and American Canyon, as well as the Napa County Sheriff’s Office and Kaiser Permanente, are participating in the Drug Enforcement Administration —DEA — National Take-Back Day on Saturday, Oct. 23.

From 10 a.m. until 2 p..m., unused medication and used syringes and needles can be brought to any of the following six drop-off sites:

• American Canyon Police Department, 911 Donaldson Way East, American Canyon
• Napa County Sheriff’s Office, 1535 Airport Blvd., Napa
• Kaiser Permanente Medical Offices, East Parking Lot *Drive-Through Only,* 3285 Claremont Way, Napa
• Yountville Police Department, 1950 Mulberry Street, Yountville
• St. Helena Police Department, 1480 Main Street, St. Helena
• Calistoga Police Department, 1235 Washington St., Calistoga

What To Know

The event is free and anonymous. Residents are asked to wear a face covering when dropping off at any of the event locations.

The Kaiser Permanente location is drive-through only and residents are asked to store any material that they plan to drop off in their vehicle trunks. Staff will not open vehicle doors or enter vehicle cabins.

Residents can bring their unused or expired over-the-counter and prescription medications (including tablets, capsules, inhalers and liquids) to one of six collection locations throughout Napa County. It is recommended that any personal information on medication containers be removed or blacked out before dropping them off.

Additionally, these one-day collection sites can legally accept federally designated “controlled” substances that include many highly addictive prescription medications such as morphine and OxyContin, as well as illegal narcotics such as LSD and ecstasy.

Home-generated medical sharps (needles, syringes, epinephrine auto-injectors, etc.) will be accepted for disposal at all the Oct. 23 sites, as well. State law prohibits the disposal of home-generated sharps in trash or recycling containers.

"Improper disposal of home-generated sharps is a health and safety threat to children, home health care providers, trash & recycling workers, and pets through accidental needle stick injuries," county officials said in a news release. "Sharps that are not disposed of properly can also end up on beaches and riverbanks, waterways, parks and more. Ideally, sharps should only be transported in an approved container obtained from a physician or pharmacy. A tightly sealed, leak- and puncture-resistant container with a lid, such as a bleach bottle, coffee can, or other similar container, is an acceptable alternative for transportation of sharps to the event. These containers should be labeled as 'sharps.'"

About Take-Back Day

The 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health revealed that 9.7 million people misused prescription pain relievers, 4.9 million people misused prescription stimulants, and 5.9 million people misused prescription tranquilizers or sedatives in 2019, according to a news release.

The DEA’s Take-Back Day event provides an opportunity for Americans to prevent drug addiction and overdose deaths.

More than 4,445 law enforcement agencies across the nation participated in the 20th National Take-Back on April 24, and 839,543 pounds of drugs were turned in.

California had 48,688 pounds turned in — the second-highest amount among states.

“If medications are flushed or put down the drain, they can pass right through the wastewater treatment process and enter our waterways where they can cause water pollution and harm aquatic life,” said Stephanie Turnipseed, Pollution Prevention and Outreach Coordinator with the Napa Sanitation District. “The best thing to do with old medications is to bring them to a take-back event or one of the year-round drop-off locations for safe disposal. These disposal options are free and they help protect your family and the environment.”

In addition to the environmental impact of improperly disposed medications, prescription and over-the-counter drugs that remain in home cabinets are highly susceptible to misuse and abuse. Studies show that the majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet.

“Medication safety is very important to us here at Kaiser Permanente," said Omid Afshari, PharmD, Area Pharmacy Director, Kaiser Permanente Napa Solano Service Area. "Keeping unused or expired prescription or over-the-counter medications around your house means there’s a chance they could be used improperly — even accidentally – and cause harm to another person’s health. We especially don’t want to see that happen to children. That’s why we encourage people to open their cabinets and drawers. Collect unused or expired medications and properly dispose of them. Drug Take-Back collection events can provide that convenient and free opportunity. We are proud to work with local law enforcement and other community partners to provide this resource.”