What to do with Expired Medicine?

Do you have old or expired medicine in your home? Most likely! A 2021 study by OnePoll found that three out of five participants currently have old or expired medicine that they are saving for future use. However, while this may seem like a financially smart and preemptive health precaution, it actually leads to more harm than good. Keeping reading to find out why holding onto expired medicine is bad and how you can properly dispose of it.

Why should you get rid of your expired medicine?

According to the FDA, expired medicine can be less effective or risky due to a change in chemical composition or a decrease in strength. Additionally, specific medications risk of bacterial growth and sub-potent antibiotics that can fail to treat infections, leading to more serious illnesses and antibiotic resistance.

On top of that, every 25 minutes, someone in United States dies from a prescription drug overdose. Whether they are found in your garbage or in your medicine cabinet, theft and misuse of these items grows as a nation wide pandemic rises. Knowing how to properly dispose of your expired medicine is a matter of life or death. Don’t know how? We can teach you!

How to Properly Dispose of Your Expired Medicine?

There are a few safe ways to safely dispose of your expired medicine:

1.) Throwing it out in yourself: To safely dispose of your medicine at home, place your medication into plastic bag. Then, fill the bag with unpalpable substances (dirt, kitty litter, coffee grains) and mix the items together until the medicine is coated with substance. Then you can dispose the bag into your trash. This prevents anyone from being able to consume or resell you pills.

Additionally, when disposing of your prescription bottles, make sure to cross of all information pertaining to your identity. This includes: name, doctor’s name, address, Rx number, etc…

You should never dispose of your expired medicine by flushing them down your toilet, unless the label or accompanying patient information expressly directs you to do so.

2.) Calling disposal service: If you aren’t sure that you will be able to safely dispose of your expired medicine at home with the methods listed above, then you can call a biohazard disposal service to safely pick-up your medicine. Additionally, you can also call your county’s solid waste management district and ask if a drug take-back program is available in your community.

3.) Dropping off medicine at disposal site: If you’re not able to safely dispose of your expired medicine yourself and your community lacks the resources to pick-up your medicine, then the best option for you is to dispose of your medicine at drop off site. Not sure where the closest drop off site is near you? Check our list below to find out!

Drop off Locations in Indianapolis

There are numerous locations around Indianapolis that are open permanently for expired medicine disposal:

Beach Grove Police Department – 340 Churchman Ave Beach Grove, IN 46107
Community Medical Center Pharmacy – 5506 E 16th St. Indianapolis, IN 46218
CVS Pharmacy – 5611 Georgetown Rd., Indianapolis, IN 46254
CVS Pharmacy- 3705 Kentucky Ave Indianapolis, IN 46221
CVS Pharmacy – 1375 West 86th St., Indianapolis, IN 46260
CVS Pharmacy – 1545 North Meridian St. Indianapolis, IN 46202
CVS Pharmacy – 8935 East 21st Street Indianapolis, IN 46219
Eskenazi Health Cottage Corner Pharmacy – 1434 S Shelby St., Indianapolis, IN 46203
Eskenazi Health Forest Manor Pharmacy – 3840 N Sherman Dr., Indianapolis, IN 46202
Eskenazi Health Midtown Pharmacy – 1700 N Illinois St., Indianapolis, IN 46202
Eskenazi Health North Arlington Pharmacy – 2505 N Arlington Ave, Indianapolis, IN 46219
Eskenazi Health Outpatient Care Center Pharmacy – 720 Eskenazi Ave Indianapolis, IN 46202
Eskenazi Health Westside Pharmacy – 2732 W Michigan St., Indianapolis, IN 46222
Marion County Sheriff’s Department – 40 S Alabama St., Indianapolis, IN 46204
Speedway Police Department – 1410 N Lynhurst Dr. Speedway, IN 46224
Walgreens Pharmacy – 3545 W. 86th Street, Indianapolis, IN 46268
Walgreens Pharmacy – 8905 E. 10th Street, Indianapolis, IN 46219

For a full list of permanent drop off locations throughout Indiana, click here.

Is Fire Dawgs a Drop Off Location for Expired Medicine?

No. Fire Dawgs Junk Removal is not a drop off location for expired medicine or any other unwanted items at any of our locations. Nor do we come to your home or office to pick-up expired medicine.

SO WHAT DOES FIRE DAWGS JUNK REMOVAL HELP WITH?

Fire Dawgs Junk Removal is a local, veteran and firefighter owned company on a mission to help you get your space back! We can handle any job from commercial demolition and tear outs to estate clean outs — and even simple curbside junk pick-up. We take on the tough jobs that the other guys won’t and get “IT” done! Here is list of our most popular services:

For a full list of all the services we offer, click here. Curious on our pricing? Click here to learn more about our pricing! Don’t want to guesstimate on your cost? We can remedy that with our free, in person estimate!

HOW DO I GET AN ESTIMATE?

Give our friendly customer service team a call and they’ll be ready to set you up with a free, in person estimate and answer any questions you may have! Give us a call 317-291-DAWG ! Unable to call for any reason? No problem! Contact us online here to find a time that works best for you and we’ll reach out to you at your connivence. Have pictures or videos that you want to send us? Text us at 317-597-4744 to receive a fast and simple electronic estimate.

Be sure to follow Fire Dawgs Junk Removal on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok to see our latest projects. At Fire Dawgs, we treat every customer the way we would want our family to be treated by providing award-winning service! We hope we provided you with valuable information for what to do with your expired medicine and we hope to see you soon!