Sheriff’s office unveils prescription drug box
Published 7:00 am Friday, May 17, 2024
Pictured are (back row, left to right) Darrell Sanders, Allin Whittle, Sheriff Danny Bond, David Scruggs, Michael Clemons, Mattie Gomillion and (front row, left to right) Ann Steiner Gregory, Staci Wilson, Chansica Lanier and Renee Hickman. Photo by Amy Lewis.
Refreshments at the prescription drug box ribbon cutting are provided in part by Sweet Flour Bakes in Andalusia. Photo by Staci Wilson.
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A ribbon cutting ceremony was held on May 9 at 10 a.m. at the Butler County Sheriff’s office located at 801 Walnut Street, celebrating the unveiling of a new community Prescription Drug Drop Box.
The public was invited to attend the event held in partnership between South Central Alabama Mental Health, West Central Alabama Area Health Education Center (AHEC) and the Butler County Sheriff’s Office.
“I am a program manager for a rural response opioid grant with West Central Alabama AHEC and our goal is to tackle the opioid epidemic in rural counties in the state of Alabama,” said Chansika Lanier. “We have partnered with South Central Alabama Mental Health Center to acquire this drop box because it is much needed and a lot of people don’t know where to take their old unused medication.”
According to a publication by the FDA, keeping medicines after they are no longer needed creates an unnecessary health risk in the home, especially if there are children present. Even child-resistant containers cannot completely prevent a child from taking medicines that belong to someone else. The publication emphasizes that the best way to dispose of most types of unused or expired medicines, both prescription and over the counter, is to drop off the medicine at a drug take-back site, location or program as soon as they are no longer being used.
Sheriff Danny Bond performed the ribbon cutting honors and explained the process to the gathered crowd.
“The box is for people to drop off medications that they no longer use or are expired. It’s just a safer way to dispose of drugs instead of using a trash can or flushing them down a toilet,” Bond said. “When people come in, we’ll meet them out here in the lobby and take what they have, then we’ll take it in and put it in the box. When the box is filled, we’ll seal it up and mental health will come by and take it to be destroyed properly.”
The new Prescription Drug Drop Box provides a safe and convenient way for Butler County residents to dispose of their medications, contributing to a safer community and environment.
