Return Household Medicine in Washington State!

Protect your family.

Returning unwanted medications makes your home safer. Return unwanted medicines for free and safe disposal - learn how!

Protect our community.
Proper and safe disposal prevents theft and other misuse of medications. What's the safest way to dispose of unwanted household medicines?

Protect our environment.
Flushing or throwing away medications puts our waterways and aquatic life at risk. Learn more about medicines in the water.

Governments and professional associations: Sample Resolution supporting Secure Medicine Return

What's New

Recent News: Under current federal law, controlled substances (medicines that are subject to abuse or addiction) that have been distributed to residents can only be returned to police. They cannot be returned to a pharmacy take back program. Congressman Jay Inslee (Dist. 1, WA) filed legislation to amend the Controlled Substances Act to allow for more options to return controlled substances. The bill, HR 5809, passed through the Committee on Energy and Commerce. A similar bill to amend the Controlled Substances Act, S.3397 passed through the full Senate on August 3, 2010. To view the bills, go to http://thomas.loc.gov/ and type in bill number.

The federal Drug Enforcement Administration is organizing a National Drug Take-Back Day for Saturday September 25th to assist communities with collection of prescription medicines, including legally prescribed controlled substances. We anticipate that some or all of the existing law enforcement collection sites in Washington State will be engaged in this effort, as well as additional collection locations in other communities. Details are not yet available, but we will post information and links here as we receive it. To receive updates on this event, send a request to info@medicinereturn.com.

Over 47,000 pounds of unwanted medicines have been collected and safely disposed! (From October 2006 – July 2010)

In the news: Don't Flush Drugs: Take Them Back! - (August 2010)

In the news: King County Overdose Deaths On The Rise - (July 2010)

In the news: Medicine disposal is important for family safety - (July 2010)

In the news: Industry ought to fund it - (July 2010)

In the news: Don't flush old medicine, turn it in to the cops - (July 2010)

In the news: Program helps residents dispose of medication safely - (May 2010)

In the news: KIRO-FM Reports: Deadly Medicine - (May 2010)

In the news: What's the best way to get rid of leftover prescriptions? - (April 2010)

In the news: More states took in expired meds in 2009 - (Jan 2010)

New: Washington and Oregon survey of attitudes on medication disposal

New: Highlights of Washington survey of attitudes on medication disposal