Locals safely disposed dangerous prescription drugs on Saturday
OAKLAND, Calif. (KTVU) -- People across the Bay Area safely discarded expired, or unwanted prescription drugs on Saturday.
It was the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's National Drug Take Back Day.
The program's goal is to help people properly dispose of drugs, like highly powerful and addictive medications, such as Ritalin, Xanax and Oxycodone.
Officials said children and pets could harm themselves, by ingesting leftover drugs around the home.
Flushing drugs down the toilet can contaminate groundwater and waterways, and infect fish out at sea.
In Saturday morning's Weekly Address, President Obama discussed the importance of throwing away old prescription drugs safely.
"More Americans now die every year from drug overdoses than they do in car crashes," said President Obama. "And most of those deaths aren't due to drugs like cocaine or heroin - but rather prescription drugs."
President Obama said many prescription pain medications belong to the same class of drugs as heroin. He said four in five heroin users started out by misusing prescription drugs.
There are numerous collection sites in the Bay Area on Saturday, where people can drop off old medication.
People can log find a location near them, by going to the top of the KTVU web page, and click on web links.