Full Notification

On Saturday, April 28, 2018, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., the Ashland Police Department and Hanover County Sheriff’s Office will be conducting a Prescription Drug Take-Back Day. This event is sponsored by the Drug Enforcement Administration - Office of Diversion Control.

The Ashland Police Department, 601 England Street and the Mechanicsville Solid Waste Center, 7427 Verdi Lane, Mechanicsville, VA 23116 have been established as collection sites. This is a free service to Ashland and Hanover County citizens.

Here, citizens can safely surrender their expired, unwanted, or unused pharmaceuticals and medications- no questions asked, no identification required. These items include:

• Prescription medications and over-the-counter solid dosage medications (e.g., tablets, capsules, pills, etc.)
• Liquid products, such as prescription cough syrups (please keep sealed in original container)

The following are examples of items that will not be accepted:

• Intra-venous solutions, injectables, and needles
• Illicit substances such as marijuana or methamphetamine

This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. 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 the home medicine cabinet. In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines—flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash—pose potential safety and health hazards.

For information about the collection site at the Ashland Police Department, please contact Officer Chip Watts at (804) 412-0615 or (804) 677-7159.