Medication Disposal

Responsible Medicine Disposal
…helping you dispose of your unwanted medicine safely

How do I know what to dispose of?   
Dr. Nicole Gattas, assistant professor, Pharmacy Practice, recommends cleaning out your medicine cabinet once a year. You should dispose of:
• expired drugs, including prescription, over-the-counter, and herbals; and
• prescription medicines you do not use anymore. 
 
My medicines are still good, can’t I donate them?
Unfortunately, no, once a medication has left the pharmacy, there is no control over storage of the medication. Therefore, health care professionals cannot take the medication back to be given to another person. 

Why should I dispose of my old or unused medicines?  
There are three main reasons:
1. Your safety. If you accidentally take the wrong medicine, you could be poisoned or have harmful side effects. Elderly, children, and pets are particularly susceptible to this.
2. Others safety. Theft of medicines is becoming more common. This includes theft by persons in your home who you know, such as a child’s friend. This can lead to inappropriate  use or identity theft.
3. The environment. If drugs are flushed down the toilet or poured down the sink, they enter the sewer system. Medicines are NOT removed from the water by sewage treatment facilities or septic tank systems. The drugs enter the soil, surface water and ground water. This causes growth and reproductive problems in fish and other aquatic wildlife. DO NOT FLUSH your old medicines or DO NOT POUR your old medicines down the sink!

What is the safest way to dispose of my medicines for the environment?
Taking medications to a household waste drop off location for incineration is the safest for the environment. However, incineration is expensive, and these programs might not be available in your area. Call your local police department or community hazardous waste hauler to ask about these programs. Generally, St. Louis County hosts one of these a year. In addition to medicines, they accept other hazardous waste such as batteries, paint, and cleaners. If you are unable to find a waste drop off day, you can dispose of the medicines in the trash. But to be friendly to the environment, and to protect your privacy, follow these directions.

View this video on how to safely dispose of medicines at home.

To dispose of unwanted medicines at home, follow these simple steps.
1.  Add water to the medicine container to dissolve the tablets or dilute the liquid.
2.  Empty medicine & water from its container into a disposable & sealable bag.
3.  Mix in a handful of undesirable solid substance such as kitty litter, coffee grounds, top soil, or sawdust.
4.  Remove & destroy ALL identifying personal information from the prescription label of the original medicine container. 5.  Place bag in trash on trash pick-up day. Recycle the plastic or glass container.
You can print out a pdf of these steps here.

If you have more questions, talk to your pharmacist. As the medicine experts, pharmacists are available to guide you on how to properly dispose of your unused medicines.
Other resources:
http://www.smarxtdisposal.net/
http://www.useonlyasdirected.org/index.php