Village now accepts expired medications
A drop box is available for the disposal of drugs that are no longer good or are unwanted.
RHINEBECK, N.Y. >> The village has placed a drop box in the police station on Center Street for people who need a safe place to dispose of expired and unwanted medications.
The 3-foot-tall metal “MedReturn” container was installed last week.
“Not only is it great for our citizens, but it’s saving the environment because what happens to a lot of medicines today ... [is] they get pushed down into the water stream somehow, and we’re starting to find more and more pharmaceuticals in our streams and our river,” said village Mayor Gary Bassett.
Bassett said medicines that are flushed into the sewer system cannot be filtered at the local treatment plant.
The drop box was purchased with an $895 donation from Northern Dutchess Hospital. Dr. John Sabia, the hospital’s vice president, said keeping expired medications can be dangerous.
“This is going to keep patients safer,” he said. “I’ve been practicing emergency medicine at the hospital for over 30 years. I’ve seen so many accidental ingestions and intentional ingestions of medications that are left at home . ... And now with the opioid epidemic out there, it’s really become very serious having the medications around.”
Police Sgt. Peter Dunn said people have been coming to the police station about twice a week to drop off expired medications, leading to the decision to install the drop box.
“Some of the stuff people brought us was too much,” Dunn said. “We had to send them to ... Red Hook [police] . ... So that’s why we really spearheaded [Rhinebeck police] to get it in here.”
Village officials expect the new drop box will have to be emptied about once a week.
Several items cannot be left in the drop box: needles or other sharp objects; aerosol cans or inhalers; biohazards or infectious wastes; hydrogen peroxide or alcohol; thermometers; and any food items.