How Long Can We Store Medical Waste?

Part of proper medical waste disposal is knowing how long you can store them in a particular containment facility. The problem is that the duration differs depending on the type of medical waste you are dealing with.

If you are interested in knowing how long you can store different types of medical waste, you are on the right page. Continue reading below for more valuable insights.

State Regulation

The period of medical waste storage on-site depends on what's allowed by your state's regulation. For example, in New York, storage facilities that deal with standard medical waste must dispose of them within 7 days.

Infectious Waste

Infectious medical waste refers to those that have sharp edges or high-risk for contamination.

According to the International Committee of Red Cross, these types of waste should only be stored for 48 hours when the storage facility is located somewhere with warm weather. On the other hand, this type of medical waste must not stay longer than 72 hours in storage when the facility is located in a place with cold weather.

However, if the storage facility is refrigerated, these types of medical wastes can be stored for up to 7 days.

Final Words

Knowing how long you can keep medical waste in storage is important to prevent bad odor and contamination from happening. There are several factors to consider when determining these durations. Still, most of them have guidelines provided by local state regulations, so it's not that difficult to figure out.