The Drug Enforcement Administration hosts National Prescription Take Back Day during the last Saturday of the months of April and October. DEA sponsors collection sites throughout the country where medications can be dropped off for proper disposal.

To prepare for Take Back Day:

• Locate all medications in your household and ensure that they are securely stored (all lids are tightly on bottles, away from the reach of children and pets, etc.);
• Inventory the medications and identify which are unwanted and/or have expired dates;
• Label each of those identified medications with clear signage that indicates disposal; and
• Take them to a collection site between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Nearby collection sites include:  

• Maryland State Police Barracks, 7915 Montrose Road, Potomac
• Rockville City Police Department, Thomas Farm Community Center, 700 Fallsgrove Drive, Rockville
• Suburban Hospital, 8600 Old Georgetown Road, Bethesda
• at all times, not just on Take Back Day: CVS at 7955 Tuckerman Lane, Potomac; 9920 Key West Ave.,  Rockville; 7809 Wisconsin Ave., Bethesda
• at all times, not just on Take Back Day: Safeway pharmacies at 1800 Rockville Pike, Rockville; 14939 Shady Grove Road, Rockville; 403 Redland Blvd., Rockville; 10541 Connecticut Ave., Kensington.