HCA Florida Twin Cities Hospital invited residents to help Crush the Crisis at their HCA Florida DeFuniak Springs ER location on Saturday, October 24th. The Crush the Crisis prescription drug take-back day event coincided with the Drug Enforcement Administration’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, offering local residents an opportunity to safely and anonymously dispose of unneeded or expired medications.
“Unused medications can easily be forgotten in a cabinet or drawer, but safely disposing of them is an important step we can all take to keep our communities safer,” said Evgenia Slavcheva, M.D., chief medical officer of HCA Florida Twin Cities Hospital and HCA Florida Fort Walton-Destin Hospital. “Through Crush the Crisis, we’re proud to give our community a safe, anonymous and convenient way to take that step and help create a healthier tomorrow for Northwest Florida.”
Law enforcement officers from the DeFuniak Police Department were on hand to anonymously collect tablets, capsules and patches of prescription opioids and other medications including ointments, lotions, drops, liquid medication in leak-proof containers, vape cartridges without batteries and also pet medication. Nearly 50 pounds of medication was collected on Saturday.
According to the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, an estimated 7.2 million people age 12 or older misused prescription pain relievers in 2025. While Florida has seen a significant decline in fatal drug overdoses, drug misuse remains a serious health issue. Florida recorded 5,501 fatal drug overdoses in 2024, including 3,820 opioid overdose deaths, according to the Florida Department of Health.
The yearly prescription drug collection is part of HCA Healthcare’s eighth annual national Crush the Crisis campaign. Since 2019, HCA Healthcare has helped safely dispose of more than 108,500 pounds of unused or expired medication through Crush the Crisis collections held at HCA Healthcare hospitals and facilities around the country. Additionally, HCA Healthcare uses data from approximately 47 million annual patient encounters to help reduce prescription drug misuse and transform pain management with initiatives in surgical, emergency and other care settings.
For more information visit HCAhealthcare.com/crushthecrisis or call the Crush the Crisis hotline (833) 582-1970.
Photo Caption: Representatives from the DeFuniak Springs Police Department and colleagues from HCA Florida DeFuniak Springs ER and HCA Florida Twin Cities Hospital hosted a drop-off location for the Crush to Crisis Event on Saturday, October 24, 2026.
