April 23, 2025 – Chicopee, Massachusetts – In partnership with the Hampden County Sheriff’s Office, the Hampden District Attorney’s Office will participate in National Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, April 26, offering community members a safe, convenient, and responsible way to dispose of unused or expired prescription medications.

The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Castle of Knights, 1599 Memorial Dr., Chicopee. Officers from the Sheriff’s Office and staff from the District Attorney’s Office will be on-site to collect medications – no questions asked.

“This initiative helps prevent prescription drug misuse and ensures that medications are disposed of in an environmentally safe manner,” said Hampden County Sheriff Nick Cocchi. “We encourage all residents to clean out their medicine cabinets and take advantage of this free and confidential opportunity.”

Misuse of prescription drugs, whether opioids for pain, depressants for anxiety, or stimulants for conditions like attention-deficit hyperactive disorder by someone not medically prescribed them can have serious medical consequences, including death.

The Take Back campaign is part of efforts by the U.S. Justice Department’s Drug Enforcement Administration to educate the public, with the help of partner organizations, about the importance of removing unneeded or expired prescription medications from their homes and to offer designated locations where they can be disposed of at no cost and anonymously. Since 2010. Take Back Days have removed 19.2 million pounds of unused medications from communities across the country, including nearly 650,000 pounds in Massachusetts.

District Attorney Anthony D. Gulluni added, “Getting unused medications out of people’s homes is a simple but powerful step we can all take to help prevent addiction and accidental overdoses. I’m proud to support Drug Take Back Day and thank our partners for making it possible.”

Capsules, patches, and other forms of prescriptions as well as expired over-the-counter medications are accepted on Take Back Day.

In addition to this one-day event, residents of Massachusetts can also safely dispose of medications year-round at many local pharmacies. Most CVS and Walgreens locations in the state offer in-store medication disposal kiosks for public use during regular business hours.