The Paducah Police Department, DEA, and McCracken County ASAP (Agency for Substance Abuse Policy) will partner for the Spring 2026 National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, which will be held on Saturday, April 25, from 10 A.M. to 12 P.M. in the parking lot of the Purchase District Health Department, 916 Kentucky Avenue in Paducah. The event provides residents with a safe, anonymous way to dispose of unused or expired prescription medications.
During the event, officials will only accept pills and patches. Items such as liquids, needles, syringes, vapes, or inhalers will not be collected. The community can drive through, drop off their medications, and leave with no questions asked.
Medicines that remain in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion and misuse. Rates of prescription drug misuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs. In Kentucky, the number of pediatric overdose and ingestion cases has increased by 104% over the last five years.
By participating in Take Back Day, the public can reduce the risk of misuse, theft, accidental ingestion, and diversion by removing potentially dangerous unneeded medications from homes. During the fall 2025 Take Back Day, Kentuckians turned in more than 11,300 pounds of unused medications.
The Paducah Police Department urges community members to bring their unused prescriptions to designated drop-off locations to help keep them out of circulation.
