Drug give-back event on Long Island aims to reduce narcotics abuse, improve water quality

Nassau and Suffolk residents will have places Saturday to safely dispose of unused prescription drugs and in the process, play a role in reducing narcotics abuse and keeping local water supplies clean.

Starting in the morning and continuing through the early afternoon, anyone with prescription drugs at home, particularly oxycodone and other addictive narcotics, can drop off expired or unused medications at a staffed Suffolk location in Sayville and five in Nassau, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, which oversees the nationwide National Prescription Drug Take Back Day.

The spring and fall drug disposal is now in its 27th year of accepting prescription or over-the-counter drugs — anonymously and with no questions asked.

Chief among the goals is getting "dangerous drugs out of the medicine cabinets," said Jack Kann, the director of pharmacy at Northwell Health’s South Shore University Hospital, which has participated in the DEA program for at least a decade.

"A lot of drug abuse will start with people finding extra pain meds and things like that," Kann said.

Also of concern are the environmental harm prescription pharmaceuticals and other drugs pose when people flush them down the toilet or dispose of them in a sink.

"Pharmaceuticals that are improperly disposed of can have devastating impacts on our water supply and the ecosystems we rely on," said Dawn Harmon, Long Island director for New Jersey-based Reworld, a waste management company involved in the effort. Harmon added that properly disposing of medications prevents "potentially toxic substances from leaching into the ground or contaminating water systems."

In Suffolk County, residents can dispose of the drugs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at The Community Ambulance Company, Inc. at 420 Lakeland Ave. in Sayville. The event will also feature Narcan and hands-only CPR training as well as drug and mental health counseling services, courtesy of the ambulance company and partners, South Shore University Hospital and Youth Enrichment Services in West Islip.

"We’re getting in our community, identifying issues and we’re solving them before us in the ambulance have to come to the house for the overdose," said Jamie Atkinson, vice president of Community Ambulance Company, Inc. "We’d rather offer prevention support than go there when there’s an emergency."

 In his seven years at South Shore, Kann said the hospital has collected more than 150 pounds of drugs annually between the spring and fall events. Nationwide last year, according to the DEA, 632 tons of medication were collected during the take back days. 

In Nassau County, residents will be able to choose among five locations.

The Town of Hempstead will accept dropped-off drugs from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Hempstead Village Department of Public Works Yard at 450 Milburn Ave., and at the Town of Hempstead Parking Field L2 at 90 Division Ave. in Levittown.

"These pharmaceutical take back events are a convenient and free way to make sure that old prescription drugs do not wind up in the wrong hands or harm our environment," said Hempstead Town Supervisor Donald Clavin in a news release. "I encourage all of our residents to take advantage of this."

Other locations Saturday include: from 10 a.m. to noon at Long Beach City Hall, and from 10 a.m. to  2 p.m. at Garden City Police Department headquarters and Adelphi University’s Department of Public Safety and Transportation.

In a statement, Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly also encouraged residents to participate as "Nassau County faces the ongoing opioid crisis."

"Unused prescription medications can often become a dangerous gateway to addiction," Donnelly said, "and offering a safe and responsible way to dispose of these medications can help reduce the risk of them ending up in the wrong hands."