A loved one’s passing leaves family members to figure out how to handle many different aspects of the person’s life, including what to do with the deceased’s unused medications.
Various medicines, which are so helpful in trying to treat your loved one and make them comfortable, can be dangerous to children, pets, and others. As a result, their proper handling and disposal are very important.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) strongly recommends the removal of unneeded medicines to prevent intentional abuse or accidental ingestion.
What Not to Do With Unused Medications
Before explaining the steps you should take to dispose of medications after a loved one’s death, here are several things you may be tempted to do but should not:
- Do not throw the medicine away in your regular trash or recycling containers without first trying other options.
- Do not give the medicine to anyone else, even someone who has the same health problem your loved one had. Medications are prescribed specifically for one patient; the drug or dosage that helped your loved one may not be right for someone else.
- Do not flush medications down the toilet without verifying that they are on the FDA’s “flush list,” which we will discuss below.
Four Recommendations for Disposing of a Deceased Person’s Medications in California
1. Follow Healthcare Provider Instructions
If a doctor or pharmacist provided specific disposal instructions for unused or expired medicine, follow those instructions. You may be able to find disposal instructions in the patient information or medication guide paperwork provided to your loved one.
Even if no instructions were provided, you can always call the doctor or pharmacy and ask if they have any disposal recommendations.
2. Drug Take-Back Programs for a Deceased Person’s Medications
Both the FDA and the State of California recommend bringing unused or expired medications to a take-back site. Some pharmacies do have drug disposal containers that meet the state requirements – call to check ahead of time.
City and county household trash and recycling services often help local governments run take-back programs. For example, the Santa Clara County Recycling and Waste Reduction Division City provides dropboxes for prescription medicines and sharps at the Los Altos Police Department. Medications must be in their original container or a sealed bag. Medications that are not accepted include herbal remedies, vitamins, supplements, compressed cylinders, aerosols, inhalers, medical devices, illicit drugs, and iodine-containing medications. This is a free service for Los Altos residents. If you live outside Los Altos but in Santa Clara County, check the Santa Clara County Med-Project for more information.
The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) hosts nationwide drug take-back days as well, typically in April and October. You can search for collection sites by zip code on the DEA website.
3. Flush Certain Medications, Especially Those With High Abuse Potential
If no disposal instructions were provided and you cannot find a drug take-back location, the next thing to do is check the FDA’s flush list. Medicines that appear on the flush list can be safely flushed down the toilet to dispose of them.
The idea is to flush certain dangerous drugs that carry high abuse potential so they are not accidentally or intentionally ingested or misused.
The complete flush list, along with brand names of drugs, is available on the FDA website. Examples of flushable drugs that appear on the list include those containing the following words:
- Buprenorphine
- Diazepam rectal gel
- Fentanyl
- Hydrocodone or benzhydrocodone
- Hydromorphone
- Meperidine
- Methadone
- Methylphenidate transdermal system
- Morphine
- Oxycodone
- Oxymorphone
- Sodium oxybate
- Tapentadol
You may be wondering about the impact flushing these medicines could have on the environment and drinking water supplies.
The FDA says it has analyzed this issue and “concluded that these medicines present negligible risk to the environment” and that the risk of accidental or intentional use of these drugs “far outweighs any potential risk to human health or the environment from flushing these unused or expired medicines.”
4. Throw Out Medications in the Trash
You should throw medications in the trash only if there are no drug take-back sites in your area and there are no better alternatives (such as flushing). If you need to throw away medicines, follow these instructions from the FDA:
- Do not crush the tablets or pills.
- Using a sealable plastic bag, mix the medicines with substances such as cat litter, used coffee grounds, or dirt.
- Throw the sealed bag in your trash.
- Before throwing away the empty pill bottles or packaging, scratch off all personal information from the label for privacy.
- Put the drugs in the trash as close to pick-up day as possible, to minimize the chance that a pet or human could go through the trash and find the medicine.
Get Help From a Bay Area Estate Administration Attorney
Dealing with the death of a loved one is never easy, but you and your family can get help. At the Law Office of Janet L. Brewer, we have extensive experience helping families manage the estates of deceased loved ones.
We can provide guidance and resources on everything from medication disposal to estate tax and probate issues. Please call 650-325-8276 or send us a message anytime. We serve clients throughout the Bay Area from our office in Los Altos.
