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Staff segregate waste where it's generated — sharps into puncture-resistant sharps containers, blood-contaminated materials into labeled red bags, medications into pharmaceutical containers, and patient records into secure shredding consoles. A licensed medical waste company then collects, transports, and treats the regulated waste and provides documentation for your records.
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In nearly every state, regulated medical waste can't go in the regular trash, so even a solo practice needs a licensed hauler or an approved mail-back program. MedPro sizes service to your volume — including mail-back kits for offices that generate very little.
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No. Most of what a physician office throws away — paper, packaging, unsoiled gloves, and exam-table paper — is ordinary solid waste. Only sharps, items contaminated with blood or other potentially infectious materials, certain pharmaceuticals, and hazardous chemicals need special handling. State definitions vary, so confirm what your state treats as regulated medical waste.
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If any employee may be exposed to blood or other potentially infectious materials, OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogens Standard (29 CFR 1910.1030) requires a written exposure control plan reviewed annually, sharps containers and other engineering controls, labeled or red regulated waste containers, the hepatitis B vaccine offered to exposed staff, and training at assignment and annually.
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Don't flush them or put them in the trash. Most expired drugs go in a pharmaceutical waste container; drugs the EPA lists as hazardous go in a separate hazardous pharmaceutical container. For vaccines, check your state immunization program first, since some publicly supplied doses must be returned. MedPro offers pharmaceutical waste disposal for both.
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Controlled substances follow DEA rules (21 CFR 1317). Keep them secured and documented, and send unused or expired inventory to a DEA-registered reverse distributor or destroy it to a non-retrievable state with the required records. Your state may add its own requirements.
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It depends on how much waste you generate and how long your state allows regulated waste to be stored on-site. Many physician offices use monthly or less frequent service; higher-volume practices may need weekly pickup. We set the schedule during setup and adjust it if your volume changes.
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Pricing is tailored to your container sizes and count, pickup frequency, waste streams, and location. MedPro customers save an average of 30% versus their previous provider — request a free quote for pricing specific to your practice.
