For the Tomahawk Leader

ONEIDA COUNTY – Later this month, multiple Oneida County law enforcement agencies will provide the opportunity to help prevent prescription medication abuse and prescription medication theft by eliminating homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs.

The Rhinelander Police Department, the Minocqua Police Department, the Three Lakes Police Department, and the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office, in conjunction with the Drug Enforcement Administration and Wisconsin Department of Justice, will take back unwanted or expired medications on Saturday, Oct. 23, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Sites for disposal will be the Rhinelander Police Department, 201 N. Brown Street, Rhinelander; the Minocqua Police Department, 418 E. Chicago Avenue, Minocqua; the Three Lakes Police Department, 1795 Erie Street, Three Lakes; and the Oneida County Landfill, 7450 County Highway K, Rhinelander.

The service is free and anonymous.

Prescription (controlled and non-controlled) and over-the-counter medications, ointments, patches, non-aerosol sprays, inhalers, creams, vials and pet medications will be accepted.

Illegal drugs, needles/sharps, aerosol cans, bio-hazardous materials (anything containing a bodily fluid or blood), personal care products (shampoo, soaps, lotions, sunscreens, etc.), and household hazardous waste (paint, pesticides, oil, gas) will not be accepted.

“Participants will be asked to empty their medication bottles into boxes,” a release from the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office said. “Blister packages are acceptable without the medication being removed. Liquids, creams, and sprays must be in their original packaging. Liquids without the original packaging will not be accepted. Illicit substances, such as marijuana or methamphetamine, are not a part of this initiative and should not be placed in collection containers.”

For more information, contact Captain Hook (Oneida County Sheriff’s Office,  715-361-5100), Chief Lloyd Gauthier (Rhinelander Police Department, 715-365-5300), Officer Devon Gaszak (Minocqua Police Department, 715-536-3234), or Chief Lea (Three Lakes Police Department, 715-546-2211).

For more information on disposing of unwanted or unused prescription drugs, visit www.doseofrealitywi.gov/drug-takeback.

“The National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day goal is to provide a safe, convenient, and responsible means of disposal, while also educating the public about the potential for abuse of these medications,” the Sheriff’s Office stated. “We hope Oneida County citizens will use this opportunity to dispose of unused and unneeded medications.”