Officials: 3rd drug take-back a success

With gloves on their hands, volunteers collected hundreds of medicine bottles from residents who had come to dispose of unused prescription medications at the third annual Drug Take-back Day at Merrick Avenue Middle School on May 21.

The Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District, Community Parent Center, State Sen. Michael Venditto, Assemblyman David McDonough, Nassau Legislature Presiding Officer Norma Gonsalves, Legislator Steve Rhoads, Legislator Laura Curran, and representatives of the Nassau County Police Department and Bellmore, North Bellmore, Merrick and North Merrick elementary school districts coordinated this year’s take-back day.

David Seinfeld, the Central District assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, said this year’s event was the most successful yet. “We collected 36 large garbage bags filled with unused medicine,” he said. “Out of the three events we’ve put on so far, this one was the biggest one, with the biggest collection so far.”

“Local elected officials,” Seinfeld added, “have been great with getting the word out about each event, so I think that definitely helped get the word out.”

According to a 2014-15 survey by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, about 467,000 adolescents, ages 12 to 17, took prescription pain relievers without reason, and 978,000 adults, ages 18 to 25, did. Seventy percent of those who abused pain pills reported getting them from friends, at times without their knowledge.

“It’s no secret that the pathway to opiate addiction often starts with simple prescription drugs that are easily accessible within our medicine cabinets or improperly disposed of in the trash,” County Legislator Steve Rhoads said. “By getting unused or expired medications out of the house and into the hands of the Nassau County Police Department for disposal, the risk that these drugs can fall into the wrong hands is eliminated.”

Rhoads, who walked up to cars and collected unused medicine, said the take-back initiative not only gets expired and unused medicine out of homes, but also helps protect the environment. “Simply flushing medication down the toilet eventually puts these drugs into the ocean,” he said.

Seinfeld echoed Rhoads’s environmental concern. “Once we collect opiates and other medication, we safely dispose of them to keep them out of landfills and our water system,” he said.

Plans for the next Drug Take-back Day are already under way. Seinfeld said he hopes that all collaborators will come together again this fall to host another event, with even greater success.

In the meantime, Rhoads said, anyone wishing to discard unused or expired medications can do so anonymously at any Nassau County police precinct. The legislator will also host classes at which community members will be trained to administer Narcan, an opiate antidote used to reverse an overdose.

The next class is set for Wednesday, June 8, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Martin Avenue Elementary School in Bellmore. Anyone interested in the class may call (516) 571-6105 or email elaikin@nassaucountyny.gov.