National Prescription Drug Take Back Day April 2024: Arlington Heights

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, IL — Twice a year, the Drug Enforcement Administration, along with thousands of law enforcement partners across the United States, hold National Prescription Take Back Day events. The last event, held on Oct 28, 2023, resulted in the collection of 599,897 pounds of unneeded medications at 4,675 collection sites nationwide.

Locally, many police departments took part in the collection, including Arlington Heights. In Illinois, 23,974 pounds of drugs were collected, across 139 sites.

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the majority of people who use prescription medication for a nonmedical purpose obtained the medication from a family member or a friend. The DEA believes removing unnecessary medications from the home "can help prevent situations involving; not taking medication as intended or dosed; taking someone else’s prescription; and taking the medicine for euphoric effects rather than medicinal purposes."

This Saturday, as part of the 26th event, a number of local police departments will be collecting the unwanted prescription drugs between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., including:

• Arlington Heights Police Department, 200 E. Sigwalt St. (lobby drop-off), Arlington Heights
• Rolling Meadows Police Department, Rolling Meadows City Hall, 3600 Kirchoff Road (front parking lot), Rolling Meadows
• Mount Prospect Police Department, 911 E. Kensington Road (lobby), Mount Prospect
• Elk Grove Village Police Department, 901 Wellington Ave., Elk Grove Village
• Palatine Police Department, 595 N. Hicks Road, Palatine
• Des Plaines Police Department, 1420 Miner St. (front lobby), Des Plaines