Lake County opening prescription drug dropoff

Doctors say it's important to finish your entire prescription if you want to kill the bug that laid you out.

But do you want to finish everyone else's prescription, too?

Environmental experts have been warning people about the potential health risks posed when unused drugs are flushed away or tossed into landfills. Thousands of chemical compounds found in pharmaceuticals are making their way into drinking water, experts say. That could be hazardous.

The Lake County Health Department has joined the effort to keep unused prescription drugs out of the water supply by setting up a drop-off site at its clinic in Highland Park.

A mailbox-style container is now in the lobby of the building at 1840 N. Green Bay Road. It's the second site in Lake County, but the first for the health department.

"This is a great program and we are happy to partner with the community agencies involved," said clinic coordinator Roni Weiss. "People need to be thinking about how flushing drugs can affect the whole food chain. This offers a solution to just throwing prescriptions away."

Health department officials said the chemicals in flushed drugs become integrated with the water and most treatment plants are unable to remove those compounds. They say fish in Lake Michigan and other wildlife are showing signs of neurological and physiological damage.

The move to safely dispose of pharmaceuticals in Lake County began with an environmental student group at Highland Park High School in 2009.

Students in the school's Green School Initiative program became aware of the Pontiac-based P2D2 Prescription Pill and Drug Disposal Program. P2D2 currently has collection sites in Illinois and nine other states.

The collaborative effort brings together pharmacies, police departments, public officials and students to keep drugs out of landfills and sewer systems. The Highland Park students set up the county's first collection site at the Highland Park Police Department last summer.

Some Illinois counties and towns have their own independent collection programs funded by state and county grants that aren't affiliated with the P2D2 program.

The P2D2 program accepts prescription and over-the-counter medications, but not controlled substances. They will take pet medications, vitamins, supplements, medicated ointments and liquid medications in leakproof containers, as well.

The program will not accept needles or other sharp items, thermometers, personal care products or infectious waste. The collected drugs will be incinerated, officials said.

The health department does not have immediate plans to set up additional collection sites. Officials said they are waiting to gauge the response of the Highland Park site first.

For more details, call (847) 377-8000.