Medical Waste Disposal

How to Dispose of Unwanted Medications

Expired or unwanted prescription and over-the-counter medications from households should never be disposed of by flushing them down the toilet or drain. Although this method of disposal prevents accidental ingestion, it can cause contamination to Florida’s aquatic environment because wastewater treatment plants are not designed to remove many of these medications. 

The City of Boca Raton does not accept medical waste.  To dispose of used and unwanted medications and medical waste, please contact the Solid Waste Authority at 866-792-4636.

Seven Steps to Safety

Please use these practical guidelines when disposing of prescription and over-the-counter medicines:

• Do Not Flush Medications Down the Toilet!
• Do Not Give Drugs to Anyone Else.
• Do Not Put Drugs in the Trash Without Disguising Them. Human or Animal Scavengers May Find Them and Misuse Them.

Medical Safety Steps

• Keep the medicines in the original container. This will help identify the contents if they are accidentally ingested.
• Mark out your name and prescription number for safety.
• For pills: Add some water or soda to start dissolving them. For liquids: Add something inedible like cat litter, dirt or pepper.
• Close the lid and secure with duct tape or packing tape.
• Place the bottle(s) inside an opaque (non-see-through) container like a coffee can or plastic laundry bottle. Tape that container closed.
• Do not put in the recycling bin.