WEST DES MOINES, Iowa — Hy-Vee Inc. announced Friday that all Hy-Vee Pharmacy locations throughout Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wisconsin will participate in National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day on Saturday, April 24.

According to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 87,200 people in the U.S. died from drug overdoses, primarily related to opioids, in a 12-month period from September 2019 to September 2020, with the largest increase in deaths occurring in April and May 2020 right after the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Since 2019, drug take-back receptacles have been available inside all Hy-Vee Pharmacy locations year-round to provide customers a secure place to dispose of unused, unwanted or expired drugs in communities throughout the Midwest and remove them from the environment. To date, Hy-Vee has collected more than 60,000 pounds of prescription drugs via its take-back receptacles.

The Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) National Take-Back Day is a safe, convenient and responsible way to dispose of unused or expired prescription medications. The last Take-Back Day brought in more than 985,000 pounds of unused or expired prescription medication across the country.

According to the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, in 2019, 9.7 million people misused prescription pain relievers, 4.9 million people misused prescription stimulants and 5.9 million people misused prescription tranquilizers or sedatives. The DEA’s Take-Back Day events provide an opportunity for Americans to prevent drug addiction and overdose deaths.

Hy-Vee also offers naloxone without a prescription in all eight states where it operates pharmacies: Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Naloxone is available at Hy-Vee Pharmacy locations in nasal spray and injection forms. The drug is stored behind the counter and cost varies, depending on the form dispensed and whether a customer goes through his or her insurance, or pays cash.