Dedham Police Ask Residents: Secure Prescription Pills While Home

DEDHAM, MA — The Dedham Police Department is encouraging residents to join the "Secure Your Meds campaign while home due to the stay-at-home order.

With families across the nation encouraged to stay home due to the new coronavirus, the Drug Enforcement Administration launched the campaign to raise awareness about medicines in home cabinets that are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse and abuse.

Rates of prescription drug abuse in the United States are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs. Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from home medicine cabinets.

The Dedham Police Department usually participates in the DEA's National Prescription Drug Take Back Day twice per year. However, the 2020 Spring Take Back Day originally scheduled for April 25 has been postponed in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

While the national Take Back Day is postponed, residents who feel comfortable dropping off their unused, unwanted or expired prescription medicine can still do so at the kiosk located in the lobby of the Dedham Police Department, 600 High St. The kiosk is available to the public 24/7.

Until residents can properly dispose of their prescription medications, Dedham Police encourage residents to partake in the campaign by ensuring their prescription medicines are kept safe and secure during the stay-at-home advisory.

"We often find that people misusing prescription drugs found those drugs in their medicine cabinets at home," said Chief d'Entremont. "We would like to remind all of our residents that while the Take Back Day is postponed, they can always drop off prescription medicine at our department kiosk, no questions asked. We ask that anyone who does this maintains social distancing procedures as necessary."