Home-Generated Sharps Waste

The State of California does not currently regulate home-generated medical waste, with the exception of sharps. The Department of Public Health (CDPH) has the authority to approve locations as points of consolidation for the collection of home-generated sharps waste, which, after collection, shall be transported and treated as medical waste. A consolidation location approved pursuant to Health and Safety Code Section 117904 is known as a “home-generated sharps consolidation point.” A home-generated sharps consolidation point must comply with all of the following requirements: (1) All sharps waste shall be placed in sharps containers, and (2) Sharps containers ready for disposal shall not be held for more than seven days without the written approval of the enforcement agency.

The operator of a home-generated sharps consolidation point approved by the State Department of Public Health shall not be considered the generator of that waste.

CDPH’s Medical Waste Management Program provides support and oversight to home-generated sharps consolidation points located in the 25 counties and one city (PDF), in which the State acts as the local enforcement agency. See the Map (PDF) to determine, by jurisdiction, where there is State or local enforcement of the MWMA.

For those counties in which CDPH is the enforcement agency, an application for a home-generated sharps consolidation point-CDPH 8663 (PDF) is available here. Also available is a list of home-generated sharps consolidation points located throughout California (PDF). However, for more information about a home-generated sharps consolidation point in your community, call the Local Enforcement Agency in your county. In addition, Safe Needle Disposal maintains a searchable database of consolidation points throughout California.