Medical Waste Disposal Services

Where Does All That Medical Waste Go?

3.5 million tons of medical waste is generated each year in the U.S.

Understanding the Medical Waste Economy

• Offices, clinics, and businesses administering injectable medications are legally responsible for sharps management
  • Improper disposal leads to:
    • Costly fines
      • $13,653 per violation
    • Legal exposure
      • Some businesses faced $49M+ in settlement and legal fees
    • Employee and patient risk
      • ~385K needlestick/sharps injuries are reported by healthcare workers in the U.S. each year
• Healthcare facilities generate
  • 6,600 METRIC TONS of waste each day
    • Hospitals
    • Medical Clinics 
    • Surgery Centers
    • Oncology/Hematology
    • Emergency Rooms
    • GI/Endoscopy Centers
    • Labs
  • 2 – 5 MILLION TONS of waste per year
  • ~29 – 42 POUNDS per patient per day
• 2ND LARGEST INDUSTRY creating landfill waste
  • Industry also Includes:
    • Veterinarians
    • Dentists
    • Optometrists
    • Dialysis centers
    • Fertility Centers
    • Pharmacies
    • Blood or Organ Banks
    • Funeral Homes
    • Skilled Nursing/Assisted Living/Long Term Care
  • HEALTHCARE FACILITIES generate 6,600 metric tons everyday
  • FOOD INDUSTRY generate 164,000 metric tons everyday
  • Cosmetic Surgery in the U.S.
    • In 2020 alone, rhinoplasties produced ~6 Million kg of carbon dioxide
      • Equal to 6,000 cross-country car trips from LA to Boston
• MANY TYPES OF MEDICAL WASTE ARE GENERATED
  • Sharps
    • Needles
      • ~16 BILLION NEEDLES used annually worldwide
    • Scalpels
    • Syringes
    • Broken glass
  • Unused or expired pharmaceuticals
    • PRESCRIPTION & OTC
      • Warfarin
      • Oxycodone
      • Barbiturates
      • NSAIDs (e.g., Aspirin)
      • Antibiotics
  • Hazardous Substances
    • Cleaning fluids and sterilants
    • Mercury
    • Blood
      • 21 MILLION UNITS
        • (All donated blood in the US)
        • 1% to 5% of all these units are wasted
        • That’s equivalent to ~100,000 humans
        •  
      • 200K – 1 MILLION UNITS
        • (costing $46 million to $230 million)

• Trace Chemotherapeutic waste
  • Drug dispensing devices
  • IV bags
  • Drugs
    • $3 BILLION – Value of wasted chemo drugs in the US
    • Enough to fully fund the NIH for about 3 months
• Controlled substances
  • Opioids
  • Morphine
  • Methadone
• Regulated medical waste includes:
  • Sharps
  • Biohazardous/Infectious Waste
  • Pathological Waste
  • Cultures & Laboratory Waste
  • Isolation Waste
  • Contaminated Animal Waste

Safely Disposing of Medical Waste

• Waste eventually ends up in either a
  • Landfill or a waste-to-energy facility (WTE)

• ~15% OF MEDICAL WASTE IS HAZARDOUS
  • Can be: Infectious | Toxic | Radioactive
• 2 methods of processing hazardous waste

1. Steam autoclave: Moisture, heat, and pressure to inactivate microorganisms.
   1. Temperature: 1600°C (3200°F)
   2. PSI: 80-85 
   3. Can treat 20-3,000 lbs of waste per cycle
      1. Regulated medical waste
      2. Biohazard
      3. Sharps
2. Incineration: (Burning) waste in a controlled environment

• TEMPERATURES BETWEEN 1,800°F to 2,000°F
  • Context: Sun’s Surface: 10,000 F
  • FOR:
    • Pharmaceutical waste
    • Trace chemo
    • Pathology
    • Hazardous drug disposal
    • Chemical waste
  • BROKEN DOWN INTO:
    • Ash
    • CO2
    • Water

What About At Home Medical Waste?

~30% of tasks currently completed in hospitals could shift to at home within 2-3 years

• Home-generated medical waste is much harder to regulate 
  • Unused medications
  • Battery-containing medical devices
  • Needles and sharps
    • Insulin doses
    • Pet syringes
    • Blood test lancets
    • Ozempic injections

~3 billion sharps a year

• ~95% of household sharps are “loose and unprotected in the municipal waste stream.” — Hanz Atia, policy and programs associate at Product Stewardship Institute

OPTIONS FOR DISPOSING OF AT–HOME MEDICAL WASTE

Options vary by state

• Pharmaceuticals
  • Prepaid mail-back envelopes
  • Drug takeback programs
  • FDA Guidelines
    • Flush approved medications
    • Put in plastic bag
    • Add Cat litter / Coffee grounds 
    • Throw in garbage
• Sharps
  • Dedicated biohazard containers
  • Community pick-up days
  • Independent organizations
• Devices
  • Donate to hospitals or vet offices
  • Professional shredding and recycling
  • Hazardous waste collection sites

Proper medical waste disposal is better for PEOPLE, THEIR POCKETS, AND THE PLANET

What Businesses Need for Medical Waste Disposal:

• Proper disposal bins
  • Red bags or containers for infectious waste
  • Yellow bags for pathological/anatomical waste
  • Clear labeling on all containers
• Documentation
  • Maintain waste manifests/tracking forms for all pickups
  • Keep records for 3 years (check state requirements)
  • Log waste quantities and types disposed
• Safety Equipment
  • Puncture-resistant sharps containers
  • Personal protective equipment
  • Spill cleanup kits for emergencies
  • Hand hygiene stations
• Storage requirements
  • Temperature-controlled if needed (check local rules)
  • Posted signage indicating biohazard storage
  • No storage longer than allowed timeframe (typically 30-90 days)
• Medical waste disposal company
  • Connect with a medical waste disposal broker
  • Schedule services based on need
  • Let them connect to dozens of transfer facilities that securely deliver to treatment facilities

Everyone Benefits from more efficient Waste Disposal

• Potential benefits to 
  • HUMANITY
• Lower healthcare costs
• Reduce hazards 
  • (water, buildings, and outdoor spaces)
• Lower energy costs
  • (Waste management facilities can create passive energy of up to ~500/600 kWh per ton of waste burned)
• Potential benefits to 
  • THE ECONOMY
    • Proper waste disposal could save the US $700M+ over 5 years
  • Can be reinvested in:
    • Treatment breakthroughs
    • Preventative treatments
    • Medicare/Medicaid
• Medical waste efficiency starts with Amergy
  • A service-first approach built on transparency, reliability, and real human support
    • Dedicated account representatives
      • Hands-on support
      • Responsive communication
      • Customized service
    • Flat rate pricing
      • No hidden fees
      • No surcharges
      • No unexpected price increases
      • Reduce spend by ~20-30% on average
      • Service Guarantee
      • No-term-length agreements (12 months vs 60 months)

We choose to earn a customer’s business every month.

Sources:

bmj.com/content/352/bmj.i788

medscape.com/viewarticle/962536

who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs253/en

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7514403

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9858835

cdc.gov/niosh/engcontrols/ecd/detail26.html

practicegreenhealth.org/topics/waste/waste-0

totalmedicalcompliance.com/osha-citation-penalties

coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/ask/7-how-hot-is-the-sun-

academic.oup.com/ajcp/article-abstract/143/3/318/1766179

cancer.gov/about-nci/budget/fact-book/data/research-funding

statnews.com/2021/02/25/discarded-drugs-wasteful-costly-problem

fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/where-and-how-dispose-unused-medicines

epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/food-material-specific-data

atmos.earth/art-and-culture/the-hidden-cost-of-the-cosmetic-surgery-boom-medical-waste

apnews.com/article/kaiser-permanente-blood-body-parts-dumpster-fine-fb0e97f7cafb738d34047717baa537b9

wastedive.com/news/healthcare-waste-increases-in-residential-streams-safety-mrf-haulers-needlesticks-epr/747643

ems1.com/ems-products/ambulance-disposable-supplies/alarming-surge-in-needlestick-injuries-tackled-with-essential-guide-to-proper-medical-waste-disposal