Published in the October 9, 2020 edition.

WAKEFIELD — The Wakefield Police Department will participate in National Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, October 24, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Chief Steven A. Skory announced that his department, in conjunction with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), will once again be participating in the national program designed to get old medicines and prescription drugs out of the home.

The event will take place at the Public Safety Building, 1 Union St. 

National Drug Take Back Day is a biannual, free, no-questions-asked event that gives the community the opportunity to aid in the fight against substance use disorder by disposing of potentially dangerous expired, unwanted, or unused prescription drugs. As part of the event, residents can drop off unwanted pills or patches. No liquids, needles or sharps please.

“This event provides residents a safe and secure way to dispose of unused or expired medications, helping to eliminate the risk that they will be misused,” Skory said. “We are proud to once again participate in this event and will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to keep these potentially deadly drugs from reaching our streets.”

According to the Substance Use and Mental Health Services Administration’s report on the 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 3.6 percent of the population in the United States misused pain relievers in 2018 and of those, more than half had obtained those medications from a friend or relative.

The Wakefield Police Department reminds residents that they may also dispose of unused, unwanted, or expired prescription drugs at the drug disposal kiosk located in the Wakefield Police Station lobby on Union Street. The kiosk is open 24/7. Residents should note that no liquids, needles, sharps, or inhalers can be dropped off at the kiosk.

Cloth face coverings are required, except for those under the age of two or with certain medical conditions, at both the Wakefield Police Department’s National Drug Take Back Day event and any time residents visit the drug-disposal kiosk amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

For more information about the disposal of prescription drugs, about this month’s Take Back Day, or for complete results from past Take Back Day events, visit https://takebackday.dea.gov/.