Got pills that you don't need?

Here's a chance to safely dispose of that old bottle of prescription pills that has been lurking in the back of your medicine cabinet.Saturdayis National Prescription Drug Take Back Day.Local police departments will accept the unwanted medications for safe disposal."These are drugs that would otherwise be left unattended on shelves, drawers, in bathrooms and other places around the home," said Carbon County Commissioner William J. O'Gurek on Thursday. "As we all know, America is experiencing an epidemic of addiction and overdoses due to the abuse of prescription drugs. So this is an opportunity for anyone to get rid of unwanted, unused prescription drugs."Commissioners' Chairman Wayne E. Nothstein pointed out the danger.There were a total of 177 calls for overdoses in the county so far this year, he said."It's extremely important that we get these drugs out of the cabinets and to properly dispose of them. You can't just dump them down a drain, because that pollutes the streams and environment," he said.Carbon County coroner Robert W. Miller Jr. said there have been five overdose deaths so far this year, with four additional cases pending.There have been about 18 annually over the past two years, he said.Created by the Drug Enforcement Administration in 2010, the initiative is an effort to prevent medication abuse and rid homes of unwanted and unnecessary prescription drugs.With collections taking place twice a year, more than 3 million pounds of prescription medication have been removed from circulation so far.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that enough pharmaceuticals are prescribed to medicate every American adult, around the clock, for one month.The 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported that the majority of teens who abuse prescription drugs obtain those drugs from family members or friends, including stealing them from the home medicine cabinet.Participating police departments will be collecting old, unused drugs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Take back sites include:Carbon• Summit Hill Police Department, 40 W. Amidon St., Summit Hill.Monroe• Pennsylvania State Police Fern Ridge barracks, 127 Parkside Ave., Blakeslee.• Pocono Mountain Regional Police Department, Pocono Mountain Regional Police headquarters, 2454 Route 940, Pocono Summit.Schuylkill• Coaldale Police Department 221-223 Third St., Coaldale.• Tamaqua Police Department, 320 Broad St., Tamaqua.• Ashland Police Department, 401 S. 18th St., Ashland.• Pennsylvania State Police Frackville barracks, 31 Eleanor Ave., Frackville.• Orwigsburg Police Department, 209 North Warren St., Orwigsburg.• Pine Grove Police Department, 1 Snyder Ave., Pine Grove.• Mahanoy City Police Department, 239 East Pine Street Mahanoy City.• Schuylkill Haven Police Department, 220 Parkway Avenue Schuylkill Haven.• Pennsylvania State Police Schuylkill Haven barracks, 23 Meadowbrook Drive, Schuylkill Haven.• Port Carbon Police Department, 90 Washington St., Port Carbon