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Public interest in safe, environmentally-responsible disposal of unwanted, unused or expired medications has grown in recent years. Medication collection boxes that are accessible to the general public are new to Price County. These drop boxes will help you remove unused, unwanted and expired drugs from your medicine cabinet and keep them out of our water supply, landfills and from being diverted for illegal use and sale.
Operating Hours
The Price County Sheriff’s Department and Park Falls Police Department have placed a medication drop box within their department to provide for year round collection of unused, unwanted or expired medications. The Medication Drop Box at the Price County Sheriff’s Department can be accessed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week while the medication drop box at the Park Falls Police Department can be accessed between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Operating Hours
The Price County Sheriff’s Department and Park Falls Police Department have placed a medication drop box within their department to provide for year round collection of unused, unwanted or expired medications. The Medication Drop Box at the Price County Sheriff’s Department can be accessed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week while the medication drop box at the Park Falls Police Department can be accessed between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Handling Pharmaceuticals
It is recommended that household pharmaceuticals be managed as follows:
Reduce Pharmaceutical Waste Whenever Possible
Please remember, dumping unused, unwanted or expired pharmaceuticals down the drain or flushing them down the toilet and into a septic system can lead to drugs finding their way into the groundwater and posing a risk to the water source. Storing unused, unwanted or expired medications in your home can lead to increased risk of accidental poisoning and drug diversion and theft.
Please act responsibly and collect your unused, unwanted or expired pharmaceuticals and bring them to your closest medication drop box. You may black out your name but please leave the name of the medication on the label.
Disposal Process
The medication drop boxes will be emptied on a regular basis; the medication will be stored in a secure room within the Price County Sheriff’s Department or Park Falls Police Department, sorted for disposal, and transported to a burn site to be destroyed. This process protects the environment and our community.
It is recommended that household pharmaceuticals be managed as follows:
Reduce Pharmaceutical Waste Whenever Possible
- Use all antibiotics as prescribed by your doctor. Not using all doses of an antibiotic could lead to development of antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria.
- Buy only as much as can reasonably be used before the expiration date. For example, don't buy 500 aspirin just because it's cheaper unless you will use them all.
- When your doctor prescribes a new medication, ask the doctor to prescribe only enough to see if the medication will work for you and at the lowest dose advisable. That way, if the medication doesn't suit you, there is less to waste. Do the same for your pet's medications.
- Reconsider the use of products that claim to be antimicrobial or antibacterial. Washing with plain soap and water has been demonstrated to be as effective as using antibacterial soaps. Even the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend plain soap in its hand washing procedure.
- Whenever possible, take your unused, unwanted or expired pharmaceuticals to the medication drop box. If you choose to store your medication before depositing it in a medication drop box, please minimize the risk of accidental poisoning, overdose or diversion (illegal use by someone other than the intended person) by storing medications out of reach of children or in a locked cabinet.
Please remember, dumping unused, unwanted or expired pharmaceuticals down the drain or flushing them down the toilet and into a septic system can lead to drugs finding their way into the groundwater and posing a risk to the water source. Storing unused, unwanted or expired medications in your home can lead to increased risk of accidental poisoning and drug diversion and theft.
Please act responsibly and collect your unused, unwanted or expired pharmaceuticals and bring them to your closest medication drop box. You may black out your name but please leave the name of the medication on the label.
Disposal Process
The medication drop boxes will be emptied on a regular basis; the medication will be stored in a secure room within the Price County Sheriff’s Department or Park Falls Police Department, sorted for disposal, and transported to a burn site to be destroyed. This process protects the environment and our community.