Thursday, April 25th, 2019 – Today, the Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) announced that this week, the state’s drug drop box locations became part of a now 12 state pilot program that makes it easier for families to locate drug disposal sites through Google Maps by searching “drug disposal near me”. This is just one more easy way for families to get access to their local drug collection box.
“I’m excited that we’re able to be part of this new effort,” said Consumer Protection Commissioner Michelle H. Seagull, “The only way that we can effectively combat the opioid crisis is by remembering that we can’t do it alone. We remain committed to working together with families, health care professionals, and the public and private sectors. We’re pleased that our number of drop boxes is growing and that there’s more than one way you can locate them. I want to thank Google for their commitment to this project, and the staff members that work on the state’s Connecticut Open Data effort for helping make our information accessible.”
"Google is honored to partner with states including Connecticut to make it easier for Americans to safely dispose of unwanted medications, including those that are fueling the tragic opioid epidemic," said Michael Trinh, a Google executive. "With just a single search on Google, Americans can quickly find convenient disposal locations open year-round, and do their part to reduce the harmful health and environmental impacts of excess medications."
Connecticut is joining Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Vermont, and Wisconsin in this program.
Learn more about drug disposal in Connecticut, and how you can dispose of unneeded medication if you can’t get to a drop box by watching our educational video here.
Google is continuing to expand coverage and adding more locations in the coming months. To learn more about what you can do to bring more disposal locations to Google Maps and Search, contact RXdisposal-data@google.com.
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Media Contacts
Department of Consumer Protection
Lora Rae Anderson
lorarae.anderson@ct.gov
(860) 713-6019 (office)
(860) 247-8711 (cell)
Google
Charlotte Smith
smithcd@google.com
press@google.com