Prescription drug take-back day set for Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., with drop-off sites in Riverhead and Flanders

Saturday is the 15th National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day — providing residents the opportunity to safely and anonymously dispose of unused and unwanted prescription medications.

Local residents can bring medications to Peconic Bay Medical Center in Riverhead or the the Crohan Community Center in Flan ders on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Safely disposing of medication at a take-back event is important in order to prevent youth prescription drug and heroin abuse, according to the Riverhead Coalition for Safe and Drug-Free Youth, which is sponsoring the event at PBMC. Many youth report abusing prescription drugs for the first time by taking it from their parent’s or someone else’s medicine cabinet, the coalition said in a press release.

Riverhead Town Police installed a permanent medication drop box in their headquarters lobby in August 2014. It is available to the public 24/7.

To date, over 4,500 pounds of medication have been collected through the combination of the take-back events and the permanent drop box in Riverhead.

“The public has embraced the opportunity these Take Back Day events provide to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous prescription drugs,” the federal Drug Enforcement Administration said in a press release announcing Saturday’s event.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse found that nearly half of young people who inject heroin reported abusing prescription painkillers before starting to use heroin. Some individuals reported taking up heroin because it is cheaper and easier to obtain than prescription drugs.

In addition, more people die from prescription drug overdoses than from all illegal drugs combined. In fact, prescription drug deaths are now the leading cause of accidental death in the United States, outnumbering highway traffic fatalities.

The Riverhead Community Coalition for Safe and Drug-Free Youth will hold another take-back event on Saturday, May 12 in conjunction with the town’s STOP Day at the Riverhead Highway Department from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.