Blake Medical Center Will Collect Unused Prescription Drugs At Saturday Event

BRADENTON, FL — Blake Medical Center hosts its third annual “Crush the Crisis” prescription drug take back event Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The drive-thru event will take place at the Blake Medical Arts Building at 2010 59th Street West in Bradenton.

The event provides a safe, anonymous way to dispose of medications that may be left over from previous procedures or other medical visits, the medical center said in a news release.

It’s also designed to raise awareness about the dangers of opioid misuse and proper disposal of medications.

Opioid addiction is a national health crisis, Blake Medical Center said. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 70,630 Americans died from drug overdoses in 2019, with more than 70 percent of those deaths attributed to opioids.

“As we better understand the opioid crisis, we learn that a significant number of opioid addictions and overdose deaths come from individuals accessing unused opioids prescriptions of family and friends,” according to the medical center’s news release.

“Crush the Crisis,” a national initiative organized by HCA Healthcare, corresponds with the Drug Enforcement Administration’s National Prescription Take Back Day. In October 2020, 95 HCA facilities in 18 states collected more than 13,000 pounds of unused and expired prescription medications.

At Saturday’s event, officers from the Bradenton Police Department will collect tablets, capsules and patches of hydrocodone (Norco, Lortab and Vicodin), oxycodone (Oxycontin, Percocet), tramadol (Ultram), codeine, fentanyl (Duragesic), morphine, hydromorphone (Dilaudid) and oxymorphone (Opana).

Officers will not accept needles, syringes, lancets or liquids.