§ 48–851.02. Safe disposal of unused pharmaceuticals.

(a)(1) The Board of Pharmacy shall design a public education campaign to educate individuals on:

(A) The importance of promptly disposing of unused pharmaceuticals to avoid accidental overdoses, medication errors, and household drug theft;

(B) How disposing of pharmaceuticals by flushing them into the public sewer system or throwing them in the trash can be harmful to the environment and can contaminate the drinking water supply; and

(C) How to dispose of unused pharmaceuticals in a safe and environmentally sound manner.

(2) Each retail pharmacy licensed in the District of Columbia shall implement the public education campaign as required by the Board of Pharmacy.

(b)(1) By July 1, 2010, the Board of Pharmacy shall make recommendations to the Mayor regarding the establishment of a program to enable consumers to dispose of unused pharmaceuticals, including controlled substances, in a safe and environmentally sound manner.

(2) In developing recommendations, the Board of Pharmacy shall give consideration to a mail-in program that:

(A) Utilizes prepaid mailing envelopes that allow an individual to mail unused pharmaceuticals to a single collection location approved for all pharmaceuticals including controlled substances;

(B) Distributes the prepaid mailing envelopes to the public at various locations, including to all retail pharmacies;

(C) Provides for the collected pharmaceuticals to be disposed of in a manner that is:

(i) Safe;

(ii) Secure;

(iii) Environmentally sound; and

(iv) In compliance with District and federal environmental requirements; and

(D) Randomly assesses the toxicity of pharmaceuticals received; provided, that the assessment results do not identify the:

(i) Patient;

(ii) Person who mailed the material;

(iii) Prescriber; or

(iv) Pharmacy.