Levittown, Hempstead to host pharmaceutical take-back event on Oct. 26

Posted

Hempstead Town Supervisor Don Clavin and Reworld will host a pharmaceutical take-back event in Levittown and Hempstead on Oct. 26, as part of National Prescription Drug Take Back Day.

The event will be held at the Town of Hempstead L2 Parking Field, at 90 Division Ave., in Levittown, and at the Hempstead Village Department of Public Works Yard, at 450 Milburn Ave., Hempstead, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Residents can safely dispose of expired or unused prescription medications to prevent misuse and protect the local environment.

“These pharmaceutical take back events are a convenient and free way to make sure that old prescription drugs do not wind up in the wrong hands or harm our environment,” Clavin said in a news release. “I encourage all of our residents to take advantage of this and thank our partners for their commitment to protecting the Town of Hempstead.”

The event will be a drive-through operation at both locations, allowing residents to drop off their medications without leaving their vehicles, according to the release. No proof of residency is required. Improperly disposing of prescription drugs, such as flushing them down the drain, can lead to contaminants entering the water supply and soil, the release stated.

“Pharmaceuticals that are improperly disposed of can have devastating impacts on our water supply and the ecosystems we rely on,” Dawn Harmon, Director of Long Island Market for Reworld, stated in the release, “which is why programs like this are so essential.”

In addition to collecting medications, Reworld will provide envelopes with instructions for future pharmaceutical disposal. After the event, the release states that Nassau County police officers will transport the collected pharmaceuticals to a Reworld facility for safe disposal.