Our Ask An Angel correspondent is Arlene Petersen, Certified Senior Advisor and Life Care Navigation Specialist in the area of senior home care.
Q: I have several old prescriptions that I don’t take any longer, and I need to throw them away. What is the best way to dispose of them? Can I throw them in the trash?
A: I don’t know why we keep those old prescriptions around, but I know I have a few that I need to get rid of myself. There are so many risks to keeping old medication in the cupboard. First and foremost, when thinking about your medications, think SAFETY first.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the American Pharmacists Association (APhA), and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) have signed a formal agreement to help protect the nation’s fish and aquatic resources from the improper disposal of medicines. The campaign, entitled, “SMARxT Disposal” is designed to inform consumers about how to safely dispose of medicines in the trash and highlight the environmental threat posed from flushing medicines down the toilet. Consumers were once advised to flush their expired or unused medicines; however, recent environmental impact studies report that this could be having an adverse impact on the environment.
SMARxT Disposal recommends the following steps for proper medication disposal:
1. Do not flush unused medication, and do not pour them down a sink or drain.
2. Be proactive and dispose of unused medication in the household trash. This is done by:
a. Pouring medication into a sealable plastic bag. If medication is a solid (pill, liquid capsule, etc.), crush it or add water to dissolve it.
b. Add kitty litter, sawdust, coffee grounds (or any material that mixes with the medication and makes it less appealing for pets and children to eat) to the plastic bag.
c. Seal the plastic bag and put it in the trash.
d. Remove and destroy ALL identifying personal information (prescription label) from all medication containers before recycling them or throwing them into the trash.
3. Check for approved state and local collection programs.
Check with your city police department to see if they have a medication disposal program. You can also check with your pharmacy. They may have a resource for you. Don’t forget to remove labels from your bottles.
If you’d like more information about how to safely dispose of medications, give me a call and I will be happy to send you a brochure about this. I can be reached at 847-429-0100.
Have a question for our angel correspondent? You can send our angel an email to apetersen@visitingangels.com or send your question via mail to Ask An Angel, 65 Woodbury St., South Elgin, IL 60177.
