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Drug Take Back Day: Where to drop off unused or expired medications

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CLEVELAND — For Drug Take Back Day on April 30, the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals are partnering to offer 17 collection locations throughout Northeast Ohio for the public to drop off their expired or unused medications.

“University Hospitals and Cleveland Clinic have formed a collaborative alliance to advance the health of our communities by focusing on Northeast Ohio’s most pressing public health needs. Preventing substance misuse and overdose deaths are chief among these issues,” said Champ Burgess, Chief Pharmacy Officer at UH. “This Drug Take Back Day is just one example of our joint approach to mitigating the opioid epidemic and reducing unintentional drug overdose deaths because medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse and abuse.”

This event gives the public an easy way to get rid of unwanted, potentially dangerous medications.

“Providing the public with a safe and convenient way to remove unused medications from the home is an important step in reducing the risk of accidental drug exposures as well as preventing drug misuse. That is why we are committed to making drug disposal locations accessible on Drug Take Back Day and every day," said Samuel Calabrese, chief pharmacy officer at the Cleveland Clinic.

Acceptable items:

  • Prescription medications
  • Over-the-counter medications
  • Liquid medication in bottles (less than 4 ounces) – package bottles in a Ziploc bag

Not acceptable items:

  • Illegal or “street” drugs
  • Needles, syringes or sharps containers
  • Medical devices and batteries
  • Aerosol cans and inhalers
  • Mercury-containing devices
  • Radiopharmaceuticals
  • Liquid antineoplastic (chemo) agents

University Hospitals locations:

University Hospitals Ahuja Medical Center
Outside the Risman Pavilion under the overhang
3999 Richmond Road
Beachwood, Ohio

University Hospitals Bedford Medical Center
Outside the main entrance
44 Blaine Avenue
Bedford, Ohio

University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center
Outside Lakeside Circle
2065 Adelbert Road
Cleveland, Ohio 44106

University Hospitals Conneaut Medical Center
Rt. 20 entrance under canopy
158 West Main Road
Conneaut, Ohio

Elyria Police Station
Main Lobby
18 West Avenue
Elyria, Ohio

University Hospitals Geauga Medical Center
Main Lobby
13207 Ravenna Road
Chardon, Ohio

University Hospitals Geneva Medical Center
Driveway turnaround by the main entrance
870 West Main Street
Geneva, Ohio

University Hospitals Lake West Medical Center
Outside the main entrance
36000 Euclid Avenue
Willoughby, Ohio

University Hospitals Parma Medical Center
The auditorium; on the ground floor just inside the main entrance
7007 Powers Boulevard
Parma, Ohio

University Hospitals Portage Medical Center
Portage Medical Arts building, attached to the hospital
6847 North Chestnut Street
Ravenna, Ohio

University Hospitals Richmond Medical Center
Outside the main entrance
27100 Chardon Road
Richmond Heights, Ohio

University Hospitals Samaritan Medical Center
Main Lobby
1025 Center Street
Ashland, Ohio

University Hospitals TriPoint Medical Center
Outside the main entrance
7590 Auburn Road
Painesville, Ohio

Westlake Police Department
Main Lobby
27300 Hilliard Boulevard
Westlake, Ohio

Cleveland Clinic disposal locations:

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