In many states, garbage is still sorted by hand once it arrives at a landfill, to pick out recyclables that were thrown in the garbage. This is when sanitation workers are pierced.
It’s good that you recap them though; that’s at least better than some people do.
Sharps containers are available here for $2 US in any drugstore. The county here has a no charge collection program at any of the county health offices as well as the hospitals. I’ll fill a few containers and then drop them off.
I think it varies state to state. What I meant by legal to throw away in Arizona is you don’t need any type of container. You could take a shot in your car and throw the single needle in a gas station garbage can and you wouldn’t be violating any laws. I would say the best place to check with which law your state has, would be to ask at the pharmacy.
It all depends on your local/state laws. There are no federal guidelines for HOME-generated sharps. That’s the key difference. Contact your local health department (not your garbage company, they say no to everything that weirds them out). For example, in Tempe, AZ the law is to place sharps in a hard, opaque canister and dispose of in the trash with “DO NOT RECYCLE” on it. They advise NOT writing “Sharps” or anything of the sort so junkies won’t raid the bottle. Phoenix, AZ (immediately beside Tempe) has the same laws EXCEPT they have specific city dumpsters that they must be disposed of in (the locations are on their website). Home generated sharps have very very different laws governing them than institutionally generated sharps do.
Good to know. Right now in Aberdeen there is no law, code anything in place for us to do with them…so most people just toss them in the garbage or take them to the recycle center — what they do after that is beyond me.
Brilliant.
I’m so glad I’m not the only one! After 36 years of this I have never used a sharps container. With the old syringes the needle would snap off into it’s own cover, the new ones I re cap and unscrew, someone would have to really work hard at it and stick their finger into it on purpose to get stuck!
Here in Ontario Canada, My Pharmacy gives out the empty containers, and then I just switch it out when it’s full. They are kinda big, so it takes a while. I’ve also seen the disposable “bins” outside the Hospitals here, where you can put them in Empty liquid detergent bottes as well.
why isn’t any sharp considered biohazard? i protect the sharp by wrapping it up in the packaging it came in. I think people overract to this crap. the garbage man grabs the bag by the top anyway, if he grabs anything. if gov’t wants to make it easy for me to dispose of my presumably hazardous waste, then fine, but it does nothing. and, as far as i know, what I am doing is not illegal. i asked public works here what to do and the response was essentially, 'um, damn, like I’m on break, um I don’t know." check your local regulations. there are none where I live.
I use empty coffee cans and when it’s full I tape the lid down with duck tape and put a sign on the can reading “do not recycle medical waste”. I’ve been doing this for years because we do not have any other way to get rid of sharps in my city. So far no one has said anything.
I use the BD needle clipper. It works quite well – what’s left on the syringe has yet to cut or stab me. I also use the BD sharps container to keep my used syringes in. It may seem odd to do both, but I would much rather people were safe than sorry.
I just went to my local fire station and asked them for a sharps container - it’s free. When I fill it up, I return it to them and they give me another empty one.
Hi everyone,
I use a hard plastic powerade/gatorade bottle with a screw-top lid. When it’s full, I take it to the local hospital. They have a free needle/sharps droppoff barrel. They incinerate everything. I’ve seen other people use gallon milk jugs. Very seldom do I see actual sharps containers in the barrel.
Your doctor’s office might be able to make suggestions on what is available in your town.
Cheers all, Mike
I use an empty heavy duty paper container, from a 1/2 gal of OJ. The opening in the top is big enough to fit test strips, lancets and syringes. When it is full, I just replace the lid it came with and put it into the trash. I was told that the needle clippers were not safe to use b/c you can stick yourself when snipping off the needle.
Here in the Portland, Oregon area, if you go to one of the Metro recycling centers they will give you a Sharp’s container, when full you take it back & they give you another free. I’m not sure if you have to pay for the first one or not.
Not all hospitals have this but there are some close to me that have sharps dispenser in the bathroom because of the large amount of diabetic patients they have so a good place to drop them into. I was also told as long as it is small amounts that were properly marked that the city will take them to proper disposal. I just had to register for that service and they add a $30.00 monthly fee to bill. For me that was too much as I would only have one bottle per month so find a charity hospital they are suppose to take them if they are federally funded.
I put them in that Red container, and I also have a Laundry container with them in it, have to take them to the Garbage co here, and put them and pay 12 dollars to dump them…the cost makes me mad, being Type 1 and being punished for it, is crazy.
Thanks for the belly laugh! That is so funny and so diabolical. I love it!
I live in Seattle and the transfer station will take them if they’re in a sealed container. I save my liquid laundry detergent bottles and fill them up with syringes (I used to clip them but my BD clipper stopped working after a couple of years and I’ve been too lazy to buy a new one…blush…)
When I have two or three laundry detergent bottles filled, I drop them off at the transfer station (for free) – usually twice a year. There’s a big metal drum there labeled “medical waste” or “biohazard” or some such scary thing. I just drop the bottles in there and drive on.
I guess I’m spoiled rotten because the transfer station is only 15 minutes from my house and I’ve never been at a loss for where to take them.
Maybe you could start a letter-writing campaign to get your local garbage company to come up with some kind of partnership with pharmacies or hospitals to properly collect sharps. They don’t want to be poked by them; it’s in their best interest to come up with a solution that discourages people from tossing them in the trash.
I now use pens and I have a pouch that I use to carry 6 tips a normal 1 day supply for me. I also use the contour USB waiting on carring case for it now. There is info to get items in free stuff. I hope that will have a compact way to carry things in the stupid world of non-D’s.