Community prevention coalitions and law enforcement agencies in Southwest Washington are collaborating to host drive‐thru drug take‐back events at five different locations throughout Clark County on Saturday, October 23, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Community members are encouraged to bring their unused and expired prescriptions and over‐the‐counter medications for safe, free disposal to any one of the following event sites:
•PeaceHealth Southwest Urgent Care ‐ 33rd & Main (south backlot), Vancouver
•Kaiser Permanente Orchards ‐ 7101 NE 137th Avenue, Vancouver
•Battle Ground Police Department ‐ 507 SW 1st Street, Battle Ground
•Washougal Silver Star Search & Rescue ‐ 1220 A Street, Washougal
•Cowlitz Indian Tribal Public Safety Dept. ‐ 31501 NW 31st Avenue, Ridgefield
Please note that the Peacehealth Southwest Urgent Care site is the only location accepting sharps and syringes (noncommercial sources only). Additionally, all event sites except the Cowlitz Indian Tribal Public Safety Department will collect vape pens and e‐cigarettes without batteries for disposal.
All prescription and over‐the‐counter medications including pills, liquids, and inhalers will be accepted at any of the drive‐thru disposal events. Medications not in original containers will also be accepted. Community‐based medicine take‐back events and year-round disposal sites are the only safe way to dispose of medication. Medicine should never be flushed or thrown in the trash, it pollutes the environment and waterways.
Kelley Groen‐Sieckmann, Community Prevention Specialist with the Prevent Coalition and ESD 112 said that take-back events are meant to promote safe medication disposal to reduce opioid and prescription misuse and prevent medication from ending up in our landfills and waterways.
“Statistics show that 75 percent of opioid misuse starts with people using medication that wasn’t prescribed for them – usually taken from a friend or family member,” explains Groen‐Sieckmann. “However, simple steps like properly disposing of medications can help prevent misuse and overall decrease the spread of the opioid problem we are seeing in our region and across the country,” she added.
