Prescription Drug Abuse Prompts Drug Take Back Today

The Seal Beach Police Department will allow residents to drop off prescription drugs for disposal today with no questions asked.

Part of National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, the effort is designed to both protect the environment from drugs flushed down the toilet or thrown in the trash while also preventing prescription drug abuse. The movement reflects the growing problem of prescription drug abuse that has reached local schools, affecting children as young as fifth grade in the Los Alamitos Unified School District.

More than seven million Americans currently abuse prescription drugs, according to the 2009 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration’s National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Each day, approximately, 2,500 teens use prescription drugs to get high for the first time according to the Partnership for a Drug Free America. Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including the home medicine cabinet.
Residents can drop off their medications at the Seal Beach Police Department from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

The drop off location will be to the front of the Seal Beach Police Department at Adolfo Lopez Drive and Seal Beach Boulevard with a “drive thru” style collection station allowing the community to drop off their old, expired and unwanted prescriptions or over the counter drugs without ever leaving their car. No syringes will be accepted. This is a NO QUESTIONS ASKED anonymous drop off location. Participants are asked to remove the patient information from the container. This program does not include illegal controlled substances.