News Releases

Northeast Ohio Hospitals Host Collection Sites for National Take Back Day on Oct. 28

National Take Back Day is Saturday, Oct. 28 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Northeast Ohio health systems are leading efforts by hosting collection sites across the region. An initiative of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), National Take Back Day encourages people to turn in any unneeded medications to ensure they aren’t misused and, instead, disposed of safely.

University Hospitals (UH) and Cleveland Clinic have partnered to host collection sites at 29 locations throughout Northeast Ohio. Click here for information about UH event locations and here for information about Cleveland Clinic locations.

UH to Host Project DAWN, Offer No-Cost Health Screenings

In addition to accepting old or unused medications, all UH drug take-back sites will host Project DAWN, which provides free naloxone kits and fentanyl test strips. As part of overall efforts to keep the community healthy, UH Ahuja, Geauga, Lake West, and TriPoint medical centers also will offer no-cost glucose, cholesterol, and blood pressure screenings during this event.

Additional Drop-Off Locations

The public can also safely dispose of medications outside of this one-day event at many of the drug disposal locations open year-round. Click here to visit UH’s permanent prescription drug collection sites. Information about Cleveland Clinic’s disposal sites across Northeast Ohio can be found here. MetroHealth also collects unneeded medications year-round at the MetroHealth Outpatient Plaza, across the street from the Main Hospital, at 2500 MetroHealth Drive in Cleveland.

Many other sites, including pharmacies and police stations, also host collections. The DEA offers a look-up tool on its website to find nearby locations.

Successful Efforts

The last National Take Back Day, the 24^th one to be held, took place in April and included nearly 5,000 collection sites nationwide, including 300 in Ohio. On that day, 332 tons of unneeded medications were collected, including more than 42,000 pounds in Ohio. Since inception, more than 8,600 tons of medications, including nearly 837,000 pounds in Ohio, have been collected at these events nationwide.