Alexandria Locations For National Prescription Drug Take Back Day

ALEXANDRIA, VA – The City of Alexandria has announced four sites where residents can drop off unneeded medication on National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, April 25.

The Alexandria Police Department and the Alexandria Sheriff’s Office will man the sites below from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.:

• Alexandria Police Department Headquarters at 3600 Wheeler Ave.,
• Fire Station 210 at 5255 Eisenhower Ave.,
• The Neighborhood Pharmacy of Del Ray at 2204 Mt. Vernon Ave., and
• Walgreens Pharmacy at 3614 King St.

Over the counter medications and pet medications will also be accepted at those sites, though needles will not be. The city government has instructions for safely disposing of needles here.

National Prescription Drug Take Back Days were established by the US Drug Enforcement Administration in 2010. This year’s event will be the 30th such day, according to the DEA, and nearly 4,200 locations around the country will be taking part.

According to the DEA, removing unused prescription drugs from houses is crucial to preventing prescription drug misuse, and the initiative has collected more than 20 million pounds of unwanted medications over the past 16 years.

In a release, DEA Administrator Terrance Cole credited the success of the public safety initiative to local and state law enforcement partners and said "Removing unused and expired medications from your home and disposing of them properly is a simple but powerful step in preventing prescription drug misuse."

The DEA's Diversion Control website also offers a search mechanism to find year-round drop-off areas around the country.

Alexandria City is also calling for volunteers to help on this and future drug take back events. Anyone interested is encouraged to contact Emma Beall at emma.beall@alexandriava.gov to learn more.