By: Lauren T. Agnew
Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr., the Essex County Board of County Commissioners, the Essex County Division of Community Health and Family Connections’ ADAPT Coalition are encouraging residents to dispose of their old or unwanted prescription medications during the Federal Drug Enforcement Administration’s Annual Drug Take Back Day, which is Saturday, April 22nd.
Collection sites are set up at municipal police departments throughout Essex County. Bringing medication to the collection locations is free and anonymous.
“Some of the most dangerous substances in your home are the unused prescription and over-the-counter medication in your bathroom closet.
Youth may sneak pills and use them out of curiosity, but there is a real danger that this could lead to more severe drug abuse,” DiVincenzo said.
“Ridding your homes of unused prescription medication and dangerous drugs is a simple and important safety measure we can all take. Using the collections sites ensures your unwanted pills are not misused and will be destroyed in an environmentally friendly manner.
We encourage the public to join us on Drug Take Back Day,” he added.
“We have been pleased to partner with Essex County for the last 11 years to raise awareness about this event and how important it is to remove unused and old prescription drugs from your home.
Residents should also know that they have access to this program not just on the national collection days but throughout the year because police departments throughout Essex County have collection boxes open year-round,” said Joel Torres, ADAPT Director of Programs.
“You must realize that even if a drug has expired, it can still be deadly if it is misused or by someone, it was not prescribed for. This program makes it easy for everyone to dispose of their prescription drugs properly,” Sheriff Armando Fontoura said.
“We don’t want the community to fear coming to a police station to get rid of their unused and old prescription drugs. This is safe and anonymous.
This is a safe, effective and easy way to prevent these drugs from falling into the wrong hands and being misused,” said East Orange Police Chief Phyllis Bindi, who serves as President of the Essex County Police Chiefs Association.
“It’s necessary to understand the importance of disposing of unused medication correctly. Not only are we saving a life by preventing a dangerous drug reaction, but we are removing the drugs from our waste stream,” said Eileen Fishman, Director of the Essex County Office of Community Health.
“We are proud of our ADAPT program and the partnerships we have created with Essex County and our law enforcement community to remove unused prescription drugs from homes.
In the 11 years, we have been working together, more than 40,000 pounds of drugs have been collected and disposed of,” said Jacques Hryshko, Executive Director of Family Connections.
“Prescription drug abuse and misuse is an epidemic, and we are pleased that Essex County is a leader in opioid abuse prevention. Drug Take Back Day and the year-round collection boxes have proven effective, with over 4,000 pounds of pills collected last year.”
ADAPT, the Essex County Division of Community Health, and the DEA formed partnerships with municipal police departments to serve as collection sites. Although officials urged the public to participate in Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, April 22nd, the permanent collection sites are open year-round so unwanted medications can be safely discarded at the public’s convenience.
The permanent collection locations, which are open year-round, are as follows:
· Essex County Sheriff’s Office, 525 West Market Street, Newark
- Belleville Police Department, 152 Washington Avenue, Belleville
- Bloomfield Police Department, 1 Municipal Plaza, Bloomfield
- Caldwell Police Department, 1 Provost Square, Caldwell
- East Orange Police Department, 15 South Munn Avenue, East Orange
- Fairfield Police Department, 230 Fairfield Road, Fairfield
- Glen Ridge Police Department, 3 Herman Street, Glen Ridge
- Irvington Police Department, 1 Civic Square, Irvington
- Livingston Police Department, 333 South Livingston Avenue, Livingston
- Maplewood Police Department, 1618 Springfield Avenue, Maplewood
- Millburn Police Department, 435 Essex Street, Millburn
- Montclair Police Department, 647 Bloomfield Avenue, Montclair
- Montclair State University Police Department, 1 Normal Avenue, Montclair
- Newark Police Department, 22 Franklin Street, Newark
- North Caldwell Police Department, 136 Gould Avenue, North Caldwell
- Nutley Police Department, 228 Chestnut Street, Nutley
- Orange Police Department, 29 Park Street, Orange
- South Orange Police Department, 201 South Orange Avenue, South Orange
- Verona Police Department, 600 Bloomfield Avenue, Verona
- West Orange Police Department, 60 Main Street, West Orange
The temporary collection locations, which will be open on Saturday, April 22nd, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., are as follows:
- Essex Fells Police Department, 255 Roseland Ave(Rear of Building), Essex Fells
- West Caldwell Police Department, 21 Clinton Road, West Caldwell
Residents can dispose of unused prescription drug medication by placing it in the marked collection sites. Dropping off medicine is anonymous and safe.
Residents should remove identifying information from the medication containers, such as their name, address, telephone number and doctor’s name. Medications collected are brought to a licensed facility where they are safely disposed of.
For additional information, please call 973-323-3907.