Safe Drug Disposal is a Viable, Sustainable Option

While we missed the opportunity to provide a comment prior to publication, PhRMA’s Assistant General Counsel John Murphy does have a response to the California Healthline article, "Challenged in Court, Killed in Legislature, Drug Take-Back Taking Root in Counties" (3/30).

Safe Drug Disposal

“The biopharmaceutical industry supports efforts to help consumers safely dispose of unwanted medicines through voluntary programs, such as national and local take-back days. However, there is no rationale for mandating new, costly and redundant disposal options when voluntary in-home disposal is a viable, ecologically-sustainable option. 

“The fact remains that most unused medicines never reach collection sites because only a relatively small percentage of consumers actually use take-back programs. These programs are also very inefficient and require significant local law enforcement oversight and support to ensure that centralized take-back locations with large amounts of prescription medicines are not targeted by criminals.
 
“In-home disposal is free for consumers, and when done correctly and in conjunction with public education programs, promises much higher compliance rates and widespread participation. It also does not harm the environment, particularly when compared to the environmental impact of trips to collection sites and collecting and destroying the medicines received through take-back programs.”

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