As a prevention tool for the abuse of prescription drugs, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office and Gainesville Police Department have installed permanent drop boxes for unused or expired prescription medications.

The boxes are a response to the success of the county’s biannual prescription drug “Take Back” days, which yielded 196 pounds of prescription and over-the-counter drugs in September.

“This is the next natural step. We wanted to make this even more convenient,” Hall County Sheriff Steve Cronic said.

The Gainesville Police Department also wanted to give residents ample resources to safely and anonymously clear out medications with potential for abuse or a negative environmental impact.

Cronic cited increases in the abuse of prescription medications as reason for the boxes.

“Years ago, the number of deaths related to drug overdoses and drug-related deaths were predominantly illegal drugs,” Cronic said. “Now that trend is completely reversed, and it’s predominantly prescription drugs.”

The hope is that the boxes will reduce the exposure of prescription drugs for potential misuse.

“This is going to enable us to make the community a little bit safer and get some of these prescription drugs that have become so hazardous, particularly to young people, off our streets,” Cronic said.

And prescription drug abuse, even in small amounts, can have a fatal outcome, Cronic said.

“A drug overdose doesn’t have to be that you simply take too much of something,” Cronic said. “You could take two things where the drug interaction causes the death.”

The drop box, furnished by The Medical Association of Georgia, will be available 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Sheriff’s Office, 610 Main St., SW, in Gainesville.

Medications may be deposited in the police department’s drop box during regular business hours, Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at police headquarters, 701 Queen City Parkway.