Your one-stop for comprehensive vaccine disposal guidance and tailored solutions for managing COVID-19 vaccination waste safely and compliantly.
Stericycle has mobilized at each stage of the COVID-19 pandemic to best serve our customers and their communities. We have been partnering with our network of stakeholders from state and federal governments as well as with vaccine manufacturers throughout the development of vaccination rollout plans. To assist in your vaccination preparation and administration efforts, we’re providing the most up-to-date guidance on how to manage regulated medical waste (RMW) generated from COVID-19 vaccinations.
Access the latest COVID-19 guidance, regulatory updates, our response, and valuable resources, such as our packaging guidelines and webinars.
Learn more by visiting our Coronavirus (COVID-19) Knowledge Center.
The recommended guidance suggests the disposal of COVID-19 vaccine related wastes should follow the same processes used when administering other vaccines. Remember to consider state regulatory requirements as disposal requirements may vary.
Syringes
Used syringes must be captured in disposable or reusable sharps containers and disposed of as regulated medical waste (RMW).
Empty Vials
The Department of Defense has recommended that all vial waste be captured in sharps containers to mitigate potential diversion and illicit intent. Once placed in a sharps container, the container should be managed as RMW.
Other Medical Waste
Gloves, gauze, cotton balls, bandages, and the like should not be placed in disposable sharps containers. Those items can go into the regular trash, or if considered potentially infectious material, disposed in RMW containers.
Vaccine Packaging
This material can be disposed of as regulated medical waste. Please refer to your vaccine manufacturer's instructions for packaging waste such as trays and boxes.
Full or Partial Vials (also called Residual Doses)
Once placed in a sharps container, these items should be managed as regulated medical waste or as non-hazardous pharmaceutical waste.
Dry Ice
Stericycle does not offer services to safely dispose of dry ice. While dry ice is not medical waste, it should be handled and disposed of by following official guidance from the Center of Disease Control and Prevention.
To purchase a Sharps Disposal Mail Back System, visit our Online Store.
For more information, visit our Sharps Mail Back Solutions for Non-Acute Care.
Already have a Stericycle service but need additional sharps container, visit our Online Store to order some for your facility.
We manage all healthcare regulated waste streams including secure information destruction with expertise in related compliance training and sustainability consulting. Our network of localized team members across the country maintain a 97% on-time pickup rate.1
We reduce your risk through full chain of custody and proprietary, real-time tracking systems in addition to compliance experts to keep you informed of federal, provincial, and local regulatory developments.
In 2022, our eco-conscious products and sustainability guidance allowed our customers to recycle 1 billion pounds of paper, safely dispose of 38 million pounds of pharmaceutical waste; and avoid greenhouse gas emissions while diverting 101 million pounds of sharps waste plastic from landfills.2
1. Source: Stericycle data, 2022
2. Source: Stericycle data, 2022