Biohazardous waste is any waste saturated with liquid or semi-liquid blood or other potentially infectious materials (OPIM). Often, biohazardous waste is used interchangeably with such terms as regulated medical waste, biomedical waste, clinical waste, infectious waste and may vary in local or state regulations. Each of these waste streams is regulated and must be disposed of by specific means to mitigate their risk to environmental health and safety. Hazardous waste should not be mixed with biohazardous or medical waste, and each should be disposed of as separate streams. Hazardous waste should never be mixed with biohazardous or medical waste, and each should be disposed of as separate streams.
Regulated Medical Waste
Stericycle specializes in the end to end disposal of all wastes that may be described as regulated medical waste, biohazardous medical waste, and other potentially infectious materials for facilities of all sizes.
Partner with the Biohazardous Waste Disposal Industry Leader
Expertise You Can Trust
With over 30 years of experience, we continue to serve facilities of all sizes; no matter how large or small and specialize in the compliant collection, transportation, treatment, and disposal of medical waste.
Partnering with You in Times of Crisis
We understand the importance of serving you reliably, safely, and compliantly during the COVID-19 pandemic by helping you manage medical waste generated from patient care. Our service has been crucial in controlling occupational exposure at medical facilities, preventing further contamination, and has been part of our clients’ exposure control plan during the pandemic to keep their employees and patients safe.
Our service has been crucial in controlling occupational exposure at medical facilities, preventing further contamination, and has been part of our clients’ exposure control plan during the pandemic to keep their employees and patients safe.
Easy, Online Account Management
Our Regulated Medical Waste (RMW) service provides 24/7 access to our Mystericycle.com Customer Portal where you can easily manage your pickup schedule, make payments, and access shipping documents and invoices.
Online Training and Compliance Resources
Our Mystericycle.com Customer Portal includes access to Biohazardous Waste Segregation and Hazardous Materials trainings in addition to resources related to various federal and state-specific regulations. You can also access OSHA and HIPAA compliance tools and resources as part of our Steri-Safe Solutions.
Flexible Scheduling and Tracking Infrastructure to Give You Peace of Mind
Our operations with 97% on time service1 are designed to deliver convenience, with minimal intrusion into your busy schedule. With more than 560 locations and 6,000 Stericycle trucks, we can meet your business needs no matter where you are.
Source: Stericycle data, 2021
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7 Step Regulated Medical Waste Disposal with Stericycle
Stericycle provides regulatory expertise throughout the RMW lifecycle, and partners with you to help manage the safe and responsible packaging, transportation, treatment, and disposal of medical and laboratory waste.
Step 1 - Segregation
Step 2 - Packaging & Labeling
Step 3 - Storage
Step 4 - Pickup & Documentation
Step 5 - Transportation
Step 6 - Treatment & Disposal
Step 7 - Records Retention
Medical Waste Disposal Services for Different Types of Waste
As an industry leader, Stericycle understands the importance of compliantly managing the collection, transportation, treatment, and appropriate disposal of various types of waste as required by regulations in your area.
Regulated Medical Waste (RMW)
Medical waste generated from procedures including any items saturated with human blood or other potentially infectious materials (OPIM), such as bandages, gauze, or PPE, are considered RMW or red bag waste. They should be disposed of safely in marked hazardous waste disposal containers that are stored for biohazard pickup.
Trace Chemotherapy Waste
Chemotherapy wastes includes empty chemo drug vials, syringes and hypodermic needles, spill kits, IV tubing and bags, contaminated gloves and gowns, materials from spill cleanups, or bodily fluids/waste. This waste should be properly segregated, packaged, and labeled for safe pickup and disposal in accordance with federal, state and, local regulations to maintain radiation safety at healthcare facilities.
Pathological Waste
Pathological waste such as human or animal body parts, organs, tissues, and surgical specimens (decanted of formaldehyde, formalin, or other preservatives) are packaged separately for pickup in containers marked for incineration only. We can help you and your staff safely segregate, package, and dispose of pathological waste generated from your facility.
Sharps Waste
Sharps waste such as needles, scalpels, blades, and pipettes that have come in contact with blood, body fluids, or microorganisms should be disposed of in a designated disposable sharps container. This can be added to your biohazardous or red bag waste to reduce needlestick injuries and keep employees safe.
SafeShield™ Antimicrobial Medical Waste Containers
Stericycle continually makes significant investments to bring our customers service and product innovations that help drive their healthcare missions. Our SafeShield Medical Waste Containers are equipped with Cupron®, a copper-based antimicrobial protectant.
An Innovation to Improve Your Biohazardous Waste Management:
- Antimicrobial properties embedded in waste container and lid
- Smooth interior finish and drainage channels greatly reduces or eliminates odor
- Nestable design and ergonomic handles make stacking and moving safe and efficient
- Integrated lid closes securely and avoids lid misplacement
- HDPE material and PGII rated
Why Stericycle?
Your Single Nationwide Partners
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
Your Risk Reduction Experts
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.
Your Sustainability Champion
In 2020, our eco-conscious products and sustainability guidance allowed our customers to recycle 1.1 billion pounds of paper, safely dispose of 40 million pounds of pharmaceutical waste; and avoid greenhouse gas emissions while diverting 104 million pounds of sharps waste plastic from landfills.2
1. Source: Stericycle data, 2021
2. Source: Stericycle data, 2020
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Biohazardous Waste Disposal Frequently Asked Questions
Biohazardous waste types include red bag waste, sharps waste, pathological waste and trace chemo therapy. For more information please see our What Is Regulated Medical Waste article.
While there are a variety of treatment methods for biohazardous waste the two most common methods are autoclaving and incineration. For more information, see our What Is Regulated Medical Waste article.
