Costs of Medical Waste Disposal

How Much Does Medical Waste Disposal Cost?

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Every healthcare facility has to dispose of the medical waste they generate, but how much does medical waste disposal cost? 

When setting up service with a medical waste disposal company, it is important to be knowledgeable on the factors that affect waste management prices and to know how to navigate the process.

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What are the main factors affecting medical waste disposal costs?

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Medical waste disposal prices can vary a lot. It would be amazing to have a clear range of what you should pay, but that would leave out a lot of helpful information and ignore all the factors that can influence pricing.

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1) Your waste management company

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Every waste management company charges different pricing. Depending on your area, waste management costs can vary by up to 90% between companies.

It would be a good idea to make sure you understand your service agreement or contract very well. Things to look out for within your hospital’s agreement include: term length of the contract, clauses which reserve the right to raise pricing, and hidden disposal fees or surcharges.

You should get multiple quotes when setting up service for your regulated medical waste pickups to ensure you do not overpay for waste disposal.

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2) Service location of your facility

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The location of your healthcare facilities is a major factor in how much you will pay. 

If your medical waste disposal company needs to travel further to service your regulated medical waste, you will likely pay more for pickups. 

‍Transportation has huge costs for companies - and those costs will be transferred to your practice. There will be additional costs for fuel charges, employee wages, wear and tear on service vehicles, and more.

Rural medical clinics are less likely to have surrounding medical facilities. This means that a clinic right in town will typically pay significantly less than one that is 25 miles away from others.

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3) State you operate in

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Some states require more frequent service and stricter guidelines for proper waste disposal. For example, California requires biohazard waste to be disposed of within 30 days of generation.

Because of the disparity of required service frequencies and other differences in regulations, there will be a significant price difference between services in states based on how strict their regulations are.

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4) Volume and waste stream generated

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If you generate a significant amount of waste, you will likely require more frequent service. More volume means more waste to be treated and more transportation costs.

Weekly pickups will always result in a greater monthly bill than monthly or quarterly pickups.

Additionally, some types of waste cost more to dispose of and treat.

‍Hazardous waste is by far the most expensive type of regulated medical waste to dispose of. There are varying costs for each type of waste, whether it be biohazardous, sharps, chemotherapy, or hazardous wastes.

Regulated medical wastes must be sterilized before disposal to kill any pathogens and certain categories of waste have separate treatment guidelines. 

For example red bag waste can be autoclaved or microwaved, but non hazardous pharmaceutical waste must be incinerated. Since incineration is more expensive than autoclaving, you will need to pay more per pound for non hazardous pharmaceutical waste than red bag waste.

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Additional Contributing Factors

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Segregation of Waste

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It is important that healthcare professionals are properly segregating wastes. Since some streams of waste cost more to dispose of than others, placing waste into the wrong container can really inflate costs. Color coding and training is essential for proper segregation of waste.

Many medical waste disposal companies report improper segregation of red bag waste by the clinics they service. 

Placing regular trash inside of your biohazard bin can definitely influence the price you pay for disposal since biohazardous waste has a more complicated treatment process than regular trash.

If biohazard waste is mixed with regular trash, then all of it must be disposed of as biohazard waste.

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Middleman Services

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Within the medical waste industry, many companies will middleman a clinic's waste pickups. This means that a portion of what you pay is going to a broker rather than your provider. Depending on how much they mark up your price, this could easily be a markup of 60% or more on your bill!

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Training / Shredding Services

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If your clinic also does training or paper shredding with the company doing your biomedical waste pickups, this will influence your bill as you are getting additional services.

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‍Tips to Save Medical Waste Costs

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It would be wise to contact nearby facilities or friends in your industry and ask who they use. You should review service agreements very carefully and always get multiple quotes, including quotes from local providers. 

Know your local and federal regulations and choose the most cost effective solution that still prioritizes compliance. For example, if you are being serviced weekly but are only required to have pickups monthly - you can cut costs drastically with one small switch!

You should consider seeking new quotes if you have been with the same provider for a long time. The medical waste industry is rapidly changing. There are many more options now than there were 10 years ago.

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Summary on Medical Waste Disposal Costs

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Medical waste costs vary. Without knowing all of the proper details of your regulated medical waste disposal needs such as your location, service frequency, and types of waste generated - it is very difficult to give you a set range of what you should pay.

However, you can greatly lower your bill by doing proper research around medical waste disposal companies and being knowledgeable in choosing the right solution for your needs.