Safe Drug and Sharps Take-Back Ordinance

By Zach Friend, County Supervisor 2nd District

In September the Board of Supervisors directed Public Works to draft an ordinance that requires manufacturers and producers of prescription and nonprescription drugs and sharps (Hypodermic Needles) to develop take-back programs to collect and dispose of unused/unwanted pharmaceutical and sharps waste from county residents. In early November the Board heard the proposed ordinance and adopted it in concept. Why was the ordinance needed and what exactly does it do?

The National Institutes of Health has noted “drastic increases in the number of prescriptions written” for opioid painkillers such as including Vicodin and Oxycontin. Aside from the clear concerns over increased rates of addiction, this has also left consumers’ medicine cabinets full of unwanted and dangerous drugs. In fact, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says more than 80,000 kids end up in emergency rooms each year after accidentally taking prescription drugs found in the home. Yet, many local residents report difficulty finding locations to safely dispose of unwanted medications and sharps. Some flush their medications impacting fish and wildlife as well as drinking water supplies and it’s estimated over 3,000 sharps are collected from local beaches, rivers and parks in our county.

In order to address these concerns the Board of Supervisors joined with other counties (such as Alameda, San Francisco and Santa Clara) in adopting in concept an ordinance establishing a manufacturer-funded take-back program. Currently, there are limited options for take-back programs through local Sheriff’s Office Service Center locations, local police departments or some pharmacies. Beginning in 2008 the County instituted a voluntary (County-funded) collection program. The program was expanded within the last year for additional sharps and medication collection sites. However, the locations are still limited. We believe creating such a formal producer and manufacturer funded program will significantly increase the safe and convenient disposal options for county residents, enabling collection of more unwanted medications and sharps therefore reducing the risks to public health, public safety and the environment.

These types of Extended Producer Responsibility Laws, also referred to as Product Stewardship laws, place the responsibility for the end of life management of consumer products in part on the manufacturer. This has been found to encourage product design that minimizes negative impacts on health and the environment at every stage of the product’s life cycle. There is no question that our community wants to ensure these medications and sharps stay out of our local environment and that reducing access to them can only improve public safety and public health. We believe this is an important step toward reaching those goals.

The ordinance will have a second reading in December and, if supported again, will take effect in mid January.

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As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts. Please feel free to call me at 454-2200.