On Oct. 23, National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, Westchester County’s Department of Environmental Facilities (DEF) will provide residents with the opportunity to dispose of prescription and over-the-counter medications at the Household Hazardous-Material Recovery Facility (H-MRF) in Valhalla by appointment from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Residents must wear masks and can drive-thru and drop off their medications, which should be in their original containers, if possible, or placed inside sealed plastic bags. To protect our drinking water, rivers, streams, and aquatic life, never flush medications. The H-MRF is located on the County’s Valhalla Campus at 15 Woods Road in Valhalla.
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. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s National Survey on Drug Use and Health shows year after year, the majority of misused and abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including someone else’s medication being stolen from the home medicine cabinet.
On the last National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day, DEF collected 434 containers of medications totalling 50 pounds.
In 2020, DEF collected and safely disposed of 5,954 pounds of prescription and over-the-counter medications through collection events at the H-MRF. Last spring, Americans turned in nearly 420 tons (839,543 pounds) of unused or expired prescription drugs and vape devices at more than 5,000 sites operated by the US Drug Enforcement Agency (USDEA), and more than 4,400 of its state and local law enforcement partners. Overall, since 2010, USDEA and its partners have taken in over 14.5 million pounds of pills and liquid medicine.
Residents who cannot make it to the DEF event on October 23 can safely dispose of their unwanted medications at many convenient police department drop-off locations throughout the year. Additionally, DEF accepts medications by appointment on the first Tuesday of each month at the H-MRF. Schedule an appointment or contact the Recycling HelpLine at (914) 813-5425 or 211.
The County also has installed locked and secured collection boxes at 38 police department headquarters throughout Westchester, where medications can be dropped off (most are available 24 hours a day/7 days a week). Read more information.