The 16th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is Oct. 27.
Here are five things to know:
1. Drug Take Back Day is a safe, convenient and responsible way of disposing of unused or expired prescription drugs.
2. The 15th national drug take back day, held in April, brought in almost 1 million pounds of unused or expired prescription medication. There were 5,842 collection sites, and 4,683 police departments participated.
3. The program, launched by the Drug Enforcement Administration, began in 2010 and now occurs twice a year.
4. The DEA's Take Back Day website has a collection site locator where visitors can enter a ZIP code, county, city or state to find a place to drop off unused prescription drugs.
5. Many hospitals are participating in Drug Take Back Day by hosting prescription drug collection sites. Chicago-based Northwestern Medicine will host five prescription drug collection sites.