[Sun Gazette Newspapers provides content to, but otherwise is unaffiliated with, InsideNoVa or Rappahannock Media LLC.]
Officials from seven of the eight county stations in the Fairfax County Police Department as well as the Reston Hospital Center collected £ 2,038 of unused or expired prescription and non-prescription drugs on April 24 during the 20th annual National Drug Take Back Day Initiative.
The department held the initiative in coordination with the US Drug Enforcement Administration.
West Springfield District Station led the pack by collecting 19 bags of drugs weighing 446 pounds. The other county stations and their collections were: McLean (10 bags, 326 pounds of drugs), Fair Oaks (eight bags, 290 pounds), Franks (10 bags, 228 pounds), Sully (four bags, 180 pounds), Mount Vernon (six Bag, 163 pounds) and Mason (eight bags, 126 pounds). The Reston Hospital Center collected 12 sachets containing a total of 279 pounds of drugs.
Unused or expired over-the-counter or prescription drugs that remain unsecured can be prone to abuse and lead to overdoses and accidental poisoning, police warned.
Drug-take-back boxes are available year-round at each of the department’s eight district stations and are always open to the public. Accepted items include prescription drugs (Schedule II-V controlled and uncontrolled), prescription ointments, over-the-counter drugs, and veterinary drugs.
Prohibited items include needles (sharp objects), liquids of any kind, illegal drugs, non-prescription ointments and lotions, aerosol cans, and inhalers. For more information, please visit the website at www.fairfaxcounty.gov/health/drug-disposal.