Members of the Hopkins County Sheriff’s Posse hosted the Spring Drug Take Back Day on the parking lot of Atwood’s on April 24, 2021. You might ask, ‘what is National Prescription Drug Take Back Day?’ Well, it’s a way to safely dispose of unwanted or expired prescription drugs and over-the-counter medications that might be taking up space in your home or lurking in your medicine cabinet. And, it’s free and anonymous, no questions asked. A steady stream of vehicles pulled up to hand over bags and even boxes of drugs and medications on Saturday, resulting in just under 200 pounds collected that day.
Posse Captain Frank Tiemann and four other volunteer members worked the event from 10am til 4pm. During that time, they heard ‘thank you’ expressed over and over from people who appreciate the program. Several commented that there’s just no place to get rid of the leftover or out of date meds, and that Drug Take-back Day is very much appreciated. In fact, during October 2020, almost 500 tons of drugs were collected across the country. The next National Drug Take-back Day is set for October 23, 2021.
It was noted that only 4,000 law enforcement agencies in Texas are conducting this program. In fact, Hopkins is the only participating county in the immediate area. The Drug Enforcement Administration or DEA oversees the program and supplies the banners for the collection site and the collection boxes. Once the program closed on Saturday, ten boxes weighing up to 20 pounds each were transported to the Sheriff’s Department awaiting pick-up by the DEA, which will carry out safe disposal.
