Alaska
Medical
Waste
Definition of Regulated Medical Waste
Alaska’s solid waste regulations
defines medical waste as laboratory waste consisting
of discarded cultures and stocks of infectious agents
and associated microbiologicals; pathological wastes;
selected isolation waste; used and unused discarded sharps;
animal waste; human blood, or blood products; and other
wastes defined as “regulated waste.”
- Cultures
and stocks means discarded cultures and stocks of infectious
agents and
associated microbiologicals, including human and animal
cell cultures from medical and pathological laboratories,
cultures and stocks of infectious agents from research
and industrial laboratories, waste from the production
of biologicals, discarded live and attenuated vaccines,
and culture dishes and devices used to transfer, inoculate,
or mix cultures of infectious agents;
- Pathological
waste means discarded pathological waste, including
human tissues,
organs, and body parts removed during surgery, autopsy,
or other medical procedure;
- Selected
isolation waste means discarded waste material
that is contaminated with
excretions, exudates, and secretions from patients
with highly communicable diseases, and that
is treated in
isolation, “selected isolation waste” includes blood
and blood components, and sharps;
- Sharps
means discarded implements or parts of equipment used
in animal or human
patient care, medical research, or industrial laboratories,
including hypodermic needles, syringes, pasteur pipettes,
scalpel blades, blood vials, needles with attached tubing,
broken or unbroken glassware that has been in contact
with an infectious agent, slides, cover slips, and unused,
discarded implements or parts of equipment;
- Animal
waste means discarded material originating from an
animal inoculated with an
infectious agent during research, production
of biologicals, or pharmaceutical testing; “animal waste” includes the
carcass, body parts, blood, and bedding of any animal
known to have been in contact with an infectious agent;
- Blood
and blood products means discarded waste human blood
and blood components,
including serum and plasma, and materials containing
free-flowing blood and blood components;
- Other
wastes defined as “regulated
waste.”
Managing Regulated Medical Waste
Alaska’s solid waste regulations
state that medical waste shall be managed in a way that
prevents the spread of disease. The owner or operator
of a permitted municipal solid waste landfill facility
or industrial solid waste monofill may accept medical
waste that has been treated according to the manufacturer’s
instructions:
- By
a decontamination process other than an autoclave;
- In
a medical waste incinerator.
Medical waste may not be used as fill.
Municipality of Anchorage Medical Waste Policy
The municipality of Anchorage has a medical
waste management policy.. A summary of the policy
follows:
- Purpose. The purpose of
the medical waste disposal policy is to protect workers,
the public and the environment from exposure to pathogens,
which could cause diseases. The policy applies to any
private or public medical, dental or veterinary clinic,
office, facility, laboratory, hospital or service within
the Municipality of Anchorage that generates, collects
or processes medical waste with the intent of disposing
the waste at the Anchorage Regional Landfill (ARL).
- Disposal. Medical
wastes shall not be disposed of at
the ARL until they have been effectively treated
– rendered biologically
harmless in accordance with acceptable
treatment practices as described in the policy or
current industry standards
and methods and the wastes do not pose
other hazards subject to municipal, state or federal
laws or regulations.
- Definition of Medical
Waste. For the purpose of this policy, the state
definition of medical waste applies.
- Treatment Methods. An acceptable
treatment method is any technique or process designed
to change the biological character or composition of
medical waste so that it is no longer infectious or otherwise
biologically hazardous. The most commonly accepted treatment
methods are incineration and active steam sterilization.
Use of other treatment methods will require case-by-case
prior review and written approval by the Anchorage Solid
Waste Services (SWS) before such treated waste will be
accepted for disposal at the ARL.
- Packaging. No medical
waste may be disposed of in the ARL unless the waste
has been effectively treated, rendered noninfectious
and properly packaged for disposal.
- The
residue or ash from incinerated medical waste shall be
contained in leakproof, fully enclosed and tightly lidded
or sealed containers. Loose residue and ash will not
be accepted or disposed in the ARL.
- Medical
waste to be sterilized by active steam
autoclaving shall be processed in opaque polyethylene
disposable autoclave
bags of a minimum 3 mil thickness. The
bags shall have heat sensitive markings that change
color when exposed
to a sterilization temperature for a given
time period. The markings will be easily and clearly
discernible.
Unless specifically approved for such use
by the sterilization unit’s manufacturer, compactors,
grinders or similar
devices may not be used to reduce the volume
of medical waste before the waste is to be rendered
noninfectious
by steam sterilization. The use of these
devices to reduce the volume of effectively treated
waste is acceptable.
- Effectively
treated medical waste will be disposed of only at the
ARL. No medical waste, except that which is generated
from within the private home by the individual homeowner,
will be accepted at the Central or Girdwood Transfer
Stations. The generator of the effectively treated medical
waste is ultimately responsible for ensuring it will
be disposed of at the ARL.
- The
waste will be transported in a leak proof,
tightly sealed, fully enclosed container; the container
will not be taken
to the Central or Girdwood Transfer Stations
for off loading.
- Medical Wastes Generated
at a Private Home.* Medical wastes generated within
the private home are not specifically addressed by
the applicable regulatory agencies. It is not the intent
of this policy to attempt to regulate all medical wastes
generated from within the private home environment.
The individual home owner or the assisted living support
provider who generates in the home environment certain
medical wastes is, however, responsible to ensure that
waste is properly handled, containerized and, if required,
effectively treated prior to disposal. The wastes of
primary interest are sharps, such as lancets, syringes
and needles used in the home to control diabetes, allergies
or any other medical conditions; home care medical
wastes associated with infectious diseases; and medical
wastes generated from in-home health care, which is
provided by a commercial service.
Guidance for Managing Medical
Waste
(from the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation Small Business Assistance
Newsletter)
- Red
bags and needle disposal boxes used to collect infectious
or biohazardous waste
can be a source of cadmium, a heavy metal, when incinerated.
Check to be sure that red bags and sharps containers
used in the workplace are cadmium-free.
- Reduce
the amount of biohazardous waste
in the workplace by carefully segregating wastes.
Check biohazardous waste container
placement. Be sure
containers are not located in places
where they are likely to be filled with non-infectious,
nonbiohazardous wastes.
- Items
such as paper towels, product
supply packaging, and other solid wastes should
be discarded as trash, and not
as biohazardous waste.
- Find
out where the biohazardous waste
(red bags and needle boxes) are being disposed.
Are they being incinerated or autoclaved?
Are they placed in the dumpster in the parking lot?
There are many treatment
technologies available for this
type of waste, such as incineration, autoclaves,
microwaving, and electro-thermal
deactivation to name a few. Avoid
incineration except for wastes which can only be
treated by that technology.
- Minimize
pharmaceutical waste by only accepting quantities
of medication samples
from drug representatives that
will be consumed. Encourage drug reps to "take back" expired or unused
samples. If that strategy is not successful, discard
the actual pharmaceutical product in a needle box or
sharps container.
- Do
not flush medications down the toilet, especially hormonal
medications such
as replacement therapy and birth control pills, or narcotics.
- Get
involved in the process of acquiring
products used in health care. Develop an
environmental criterion for products
being purchased. Evaluate the type of packaging that
products come in:
is it excessive, are the components
recyclable?
- Specify
cadmium-free red bags and needle
boxes. Purchase battery operated thermometers
and digital or aneroid blood pressure
monitoring devices instead of mercury based products.
Choose reusable cloth
gowns and drapes when possible.
Minimize the use of chlorinated plastics (They have
been associated with creating dioxin
when incinerated).
- When
purchasing waste disposal services
seek companies that offer alternatives
to incineration whenever possible
and appropriate. Specify autoclaving or an alternate
technology. This is especially
important for disposal of wastes
containing PVC (polyvinyl chloride), items such as
IV bags, IV tubing, and blood
bags.
OSHA Regulations
HERC OSHA State Page
In addition
to the state medical waste environmental regulations
there are some Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA) rules that apply to medical/infectious
waste. Alaska is one of 21 states operating an
approved occupational safety and health program. Alaska
is one of 21 states operating an approved occupational
safety and health program. This program is operated by
the Division of Labor Standards and Safety.
Statutes, Regulations and Guidelines
Solid
Waste Management 18 AAC 60
Contacts
Alaska Department of Environmental
Conservation
Anchorage Solid Waste Services
Administration, 907-343-6262, or by email at wwsws@ci.anchorage.ak.us
More Information
Medical Waste and Incineration
Guidance
Municipality of Anchorage Medical
Waste Disposal Policy
|
