Producers
HPSA works with producers of consumer health products (CHP) to ensure the safe collection and disposal of their products and represent their interests with other stakeholders. CHP are prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, natural health products and medical sharps.
Producers are defined as:
- the owner of or licensee of the brand or rights holder under which the affected health products are sold to consumers in provinces with regulations;
- the importer of the affected health products into provinces with regulations;
- their products are sold to consumers under a brand name that the manufacturer owns, licenses or have rights to in provinces with regulations.
Fully funded by participating producers, HPSA fulfills their stewardship obligations in regulated provinces by educating the public, facilitating collection and disposal programs and providing plans and annual reports to provincial regulatory bodies. Through their participation with HPSA, producers demonstrate a commitment to responsible disposal of medications and medical sharps, managing environmental complexities on a national scale, and continued results improvement.
Click the link to see HPSA’s members in 2021
Consumers
With the public’s participation in its return programs, HPSA is successful in ensuring the collection of medications and medical sharps. Through ongoing promotions and with the help of pharmacists, HPSA educates the public on the importance of returning the following products:
- Prescription drugs (BC, MB, ON, PE)
- Over-the-counter medications (BC, MB, ON, PE)
- Natural health products (BC, MB, ON, PE)
- Medical Sharps (ON, MB, PE)
Canadians’ participation in our programs allows us to properly dispose of these unwanted health products to keep their households and ultimately the environment safe. Returning medications and medical sharps is free of charge for consumers.
Pharmacists
Pharmacists play a key role in the HPSA collection network. They are in an ideal position to educate the public on their responsibility to return medications and medical sharps, and to also assist in the effective collection and safe disposal of those products.
Joining HPSA’s network is voluntary and free of charge. Through our return programs, HPSA provides guidelines, training and necessary supplies to pharmacists and pharmacy technicians with respect to the safe collection, handling and storage requirements for medications and medical sharps. In addition, promotional materials are available for in-store display. The trust pharmacists have earned with their customers is vital in helping HPSA deal with household medication and medical sharp waste in a safe and environmentally responsible manner.
Service Partners
HPSA works with transporters and disposal facilities to complete the safe disposal of collected medications and medical sharps. All service providers must be approved by HPSA and follow its procedures to ensure safety, security and adherence to environmental standards. Transportation and destruction of medications and medical sharps are conducted in accordance with methods that comply with all municipal, provincial and federal laws, health regulations, and environment protection legislation. Our service providers play a necessary and important part in making certain that health products returned by the public are packaged, handled, transported and disposed of in a safe, compliant and environmentally responsible manner.
