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If you work in a physician's office, dental office, veterinary office or hospital, you have probably had to deal with medical waste disposal. These excess materials are normally regulated at the state or local level with some federal regulations. It's necessary to dispose of these materials in a sanitary way so that there is no risk to public health. In general, the various governing bodies split up their regulations, depending on the type of trash being disposed of. Usually, the more hazardous the material, the more likely it is that the federal government is regulating its use. As such, individuals or offices can receive heavy penalties for not disposing of the materials in an appropriate way. History In 1988, congress took action to increase the amount of surveillance of this kind of rubbish after it was found washing up on many East Coast beaches. The name of the act was the Medical Waste Tracking Act, or MWTA. In the act, the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, was required to create a tracking system of the waste and manage standards for how the materials could be packaged, labeled, and segregated from other kinds of trash. Record keeping was also required. This program ended in 1999. During that time, the EPA conducted a lot of useful research to determine best practices for the industry. They examined a number of technologies to determine the amount of contamination they produce. Microwaves, incinerators, and various chemical and mechanical systems were included in their investigations. In general, it was determined that the closer you are to the potentially infectious materials, the higher the risk for contamination. Incineration Currently in the United States, over 90% of medical waste disposal is done through incineration. Because of this, there have been specific guidelines created for incinerators to ensure their safety. This includes stringent air emissions guidelines to ensure the smoke and gas created by the incinerators will not damage the environment. There are also standards to ensure that mercury emissions, particulate matter, hydrogen chloride, and dioxin decline significantly. Other Methods However, there are other options beyond incineration for medical waste disposal. Because the new standards for incinerators will increase the cost of incineration for hospitals and other facilities, the EPA is predicting that new methods will replace the incineration method. These include off-site commercial disposal options and onsite disinfection methods. Examples of this include using microwaves to conduct heat and perform thermal disinfection, autoclaving, and systems that use both chemical and mechanical systems. To learn more about how to properly execute medical waste disposal and how the EPA's regulations could effect your operations, visit the US EPA website. To learn more about their options for medical waste disposal, Michigan residents should visit http://www.dld-inc.com.
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