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Medical Waste Disposal Fort Lauderdale – Explaining Federal Regulations for Hospital Waste Disposal

Medical waste disposal is a process that every hospital needs to take in very seriously. Since this is something that could, if done improperly and without care, put the hospital’s patients, staff, visitors, not to mention the general public, at risk of getting infected with any number of diseases, medical waste disposal for hospitals has to be regulated by both state and federal governments of the United States of America.

In this short and hopefully helpful article on medical waste management Fort Lauderdale, I will explain in a little more detail federal regulations for hospital medical waste disposal.

Hospital medical waste disposal is regulated at federal level by the EPA (that is Environmental Protection Agency). This government agency specifies minimal regulations that all hospitals in the United States have to follow when it comes to medical waste disposal.

As such, you can think of federal medical waste management regulations as a sort of “umbrella” for more stricter, state laws.

What Does Medical Waste Include According to EPA?

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, medical waste includes the following: body organs, surgical equipment, needles, bandages, lancets, scalpels, and any other solid material that is contaminated with either human or animal cells, bodily fluids, blood or other tissue.

What are the Most Common Medical Waste Disposal Techniques?

The most commonly used medical waste management technique that hospitals in the U.S. are using is incineration. About 90% of all hospitals and other health care institutions from Florida to California incinerate their medical waste.

Another medical waste disposal method is disinfection. There are several disinfection methods, including: steam sterilization (autoclaving), thermal treatment and chemical mechanical systems.

Disinfection is only used when medical waste can be reused or recycled, unlike incineration, which should be used if hospital waste has to be destroyed completely.

Both of these medical waste management methods are regulated by EPA in the following ways:

  • Incineration regulations

The EPA imposes minimal temps and emission caps that can be used for incinerators. The minimal temperature depends on the type of the incinerator, while emission cap depends also on the type of incinerator, but also on the type of medical waste you wish disposed and the size of your facility.

  • Disinfection regulations

EPA oversees the FIFRA (Federal Insecticide and Rodenticide Act. Under this act, manufactures who make claims of their product being anti-microbial need to register that same product with the EPA and prove that it does not cause any negative effects to people, animals or environment before EPA can stamp its approval for the Fort Lauderdale Medical Waste sector.