VIDALIA — With National Prescription Take Back Day fast approaching, local drop-off locations are prepping to receive old or unused medications.

April 28, is National Prescription Take Back Day, and locations nationwide will open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to allow citizens to safely dispose of medications.

In Vidalia, Concordia Parish Healthy Coalition Coordinator Brady Fields is organizing an event Saturday at the Vidalia Police Department for residents.

Along with the Vidalia site, sponsored by the Louisiana Partnership for success and the Concordia Parish Healthy Coalition, the Adams County Sheriff’s Office and Natchez Police Department also will have prescription drug drop-off kiosks in their lobbies.

“We encourage people to bring unused medicines to dispose of them the proper way,” Natchez Police Chief Walter Armstrong said. “There’s a huge benefit in properly disposing medications. Making sure that those meds don’t get into someone else’s hands and of course we don’t want them disposed of in the drainage system.”

Armstrong said though his office has no event planned for Saturday, he encouraged everyone to bring in their medications for the good of the community.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency began the National Prescription Take Back Day 13 years ago as a way to discard expired or unused prescription medication.

A 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that approximately 6.4 million Americans abuse prescription drugs, and that many of the abused prescription medications are obtained from unused medication from family or friends.

The DEA schedules a take-back day twice a year, with one event in the spring and one in the fall.

On the fall 2017 collection day, the DEA reports more than 5,300 collection sites amassed approximately 456 tons of prescription medication.