NEWBERRY — LMAS District Health Department has partnered with local sheriffs’ offices, Communities that Care Coalitions, the Michigan Opioid Prescribing Engagement Network (MIOPEN), and the Eastern Upper Peninsula Opioid Response Coalition (EUP-ORC) to create district-wide health and safety events. Medication Take Back Day addresses a crucial public health and safety issue by providing safe, convenient, and responsible means of disposing of prescription drugs.

In a collection program, the drugs are incinerated under specific conditions that destroy active drug components. Items that will be accepted at the take back event include: all pills, capsules, patches, inhalers, sharps, lancets, and pet/veterinary medicines. In Schoolcraft County the evt will take place October 28 from 3 to 6 p.m. at the Youth Center Building in Manistique (next to the ice rink).

Educating the public about the potential for abuse of medications is essential, and LMAS is committed to making communities safer and healthier, preventing accidental deaths. This is a free service to the LMAS community. This program is anonymous and no questions will be asked.

You can make a difference by keeping track of the medicine you and your family have, rethinking where and how you store your medications, and by safely disposing of any unused medications. Too often, unused, and expired medications find their way into the wrong hands, which can be dangerous and often tragic.