Medical Waste in Washington includes:

• Animal waste known to be infected with, or that have been inoculated with, human pathogenic microorganisms infectious to humans
• Biosafety level 4 disease waste contaminated with blood, excretions, exudates, or secretions from humans or animals who are isolated to protect others from highly communicable infectious diseases that are identified as pathogenic organisms assigned to biosafety level 4 by the centers for disease control, national institute of health, biosafety in microbiological and biomedical laboratories, current edition
• Cultures and stocks
• Human blood and blood products
• Pathological waste: waste human source biopsy materials, tissues, and anatomical parts that emanate from surgery, obstetrical procedures, and autopsy, not including teeth, human corpses, remains, and anatomical parts that are intended for interment or cremation
• Sharps waste

In King County, biomedical waste should be sorted and separated from other waste at the point of waste creation. It must be must be treated or delivered to a biomedical waste storage/treatment operator within 14 days, unless otherwise approved by the health officer.

It cannot be compacted or placed into the regular garbage before it is decontaminated. Trash chutes must not be used to transfer biomedical waste. Strong leak-proof plastic bags or rigid, plastic, single-use,or approved multiple-use marked containers may be used.

In King County, sharps waste must be disposed of or be transported to a storage treatment facility within 90 days starting from the time the sharps container is sealed.
They must be contained in leak-proof, rigid, puncture-resistant, break-resistant containers which are labeled and tightly lidded during storage, handling, and transport

The container holding the biomedical waste should be labeled with the international biohazard symbol, and the words "Biomedical Waste" (or words that clearly denote biomedical waste).