Please Put Leftover Expired Medicines in the Mailbox from Now On

Korea Post Headquarters to Start Collection and Disposal Service from Next Month 1st

"From now on, please put expired or leftover medicines in a bag and place them in a mailbox."

The Ministry of Science and ICT's Korea Post Headquarters will pilot the 'Waste Medicine Collection Mail Service' starting from the 1st of next month throughout Seoul, allowing people to safely dispose of waste medicines by placing them in a bag and putting them in a mailbox.

Park In-hwan, Acting Director of the Korea Post Headquarters (fifth from the left), is taking a commemorative photo after signing the "Expired Medicine Collection Service" business agreement with the Ministry of Environment, Seoul Metropolitan Government, Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, National Health Insurance Service, Environmental Foundation, and Post Office Public Interest Foundation at Seoul City Hall on the 27th.

On the morning of the same day, the Korea Post Headquarters signed a business agreement with the Ministry of Environment, Seoul City, Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service, National Health Insurance Service, Environmental Foundation, and Korea Post Public Interest Foundation to carry out this project. The disposal method is simple. Except for liquid medicines, waste medicines can be placed in a dedicated collection bag distributed by community centers, public health centers, or National Health Insurance Service branches, or in a regular postal envelope labeled "폐의약품" (waste medicine), and then put into the nearest mailbox. The location of nearby mailboxes can be conveniently found via the QR code printed on the dedicated bag.

Waste medicines including liquid medicines can be disposed of through collection boxes installed at community centers and public health centers as before. The Seoul-Gangwon Regional Headquarters of the National Health Insurance Service plans to newly install 30 waste medicine collection boxes. Waste medicines collected from mailboxes and new collection boxes will be safely retrieved through the Korea Post postal service and delivered to local districts.

Waste medicines can cause environmental problems in ecosystems by re-entering the human body through soil and drinking water, so they must be separated and disposed of properly. However, many people have thrown them into trash bins or drains due to a lack of knowledge about the correct disposal methods.

The waste medicine collection service piloted in Sejong City since early this year has also shown remarkable results. After operating for five months from January this year, the collection of waste medicines increased by an average of 71% per month compared to the previous year, showing a steady upward trend every month.

The Korea Post Headquarters will be responsible for collecting and delivering waste medicines using post offices throughout Seoul. The Ministry of Environment plans to provide administrative support and organize systems to ensure smooth service operation. Seoul City will establish an environment to systematically operate the pilot service, including waste medicine disposal. The Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service will promote separation and disposal methods, the National Health Insurance Service will install new collection boxes, and the Environmental Foundation will be responsible for project sponsorship and promotion. The Korea Post Public Interest Foundation will support the postal fees incurred by each local district during the pilot service period.