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582 Waste Management Practices: Municipal, Hazardous, and Industrial
Mixtures of hazardous waste and medical waste are subject to this part except as provided in 40
CFR Part 259.31. Specific classes of medical wastes are described in 40 CFR Part 259 and include:
Class 1 — cultures and stocks: Cultures and stocks of infectious agents and associated biolog-
ical materials, including cultures from medical and pathological laboratories, cultures and stocks of
infectious agents from research and industrial laboratories, wastes from the production of biologi-
cal materials, discarded live and attenuated vaccines, and culture dishes and devices used to trans-
fer, inoculate, and mix cultures.
Class 2 — pathological wastes: Human pathological wastes, including tissues, organs, body
parts, and body fluids that are removed during surgery and autopsy or other medical procedures,
and specimens of body fluids and their containers.
Class 3 — human blood and blood products: Waste human blood and products of blood, items
saturated and/or dripping with human blood; or items that were saturated or dripping with human
blood that are now caked with dried human blood; including serum, plasma, and other blood com-
ponents, and their containers, which were used or intended for use in either patient care, testing and
laboratory analysis, or the development of pharmaceuticals. Intravenous bags are included in this
category.
Class 4 — used sharps: Sharps that have been used in animal or human patient care or in med-
ical, research, or industrial laboratories, including hypodermic needles, syringes (with or without
needle), Pasteur pipettes, scalpel blades, blood vials, test tubes, and culture dishes (regardless of
presence of infectious agents). Other types of broken or unbroken glassware that were in contact
with infectious agents, such as used slides and cover slips are also included.
Class 5 — animal waste: Contaminated animal carcasses, body parts, and the bedding of ani-
mals that were known to have been exposed to infectious agents during research (including research
in veterinary hospitals), production of biological materials, or testing of pharmaceuticals.
Class 6 — isolation wastes: Biological waste and discarded materials contaminated with blood,
excretion, exudates, or secretions from humans who are isolated to protect others from highly com-
municable diseases or isolated animals known to be infected with highly communicable diseases.
Class 7 — unused sharps: Unused, discarded sharps including hypodermic needles, suture nee-
dles, syringes, and scalpel blades.

20.3.3 EXEMPTIONS TO THE DEFINITION OF REGULATED MEDICAL WASTE
According to 40 CFR Part 259, several wastes are not to be regulated as medical waste. This ruling
is in effect because some wastes are already managed under other regulations; in other cases, for
example, household waste, regulation is simply impractical. The following wastes are not to be reg-
ulated as medical waste under 40 CFR Part 259:

● Hazardous waste identified or listed in 40 CFR Part 261
● Household wastes
● Ash from incineration of regulated medical waste
● Residues from treatment and disposal of medical waste
● Human remains intended for interment or cremation

20.3.4 RCRA HAZARDOUS WASTE
Hazardous wastes are defined in RCRA Subtitle C, and are either listed or meet the characteristics
of ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity, or toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP) toxicity
(see Chapter 11). Quantities of hazardous waste generated by hospitals compared with industry are
small; however, some may be acutely toxic. Many chemotherapy wastes may be defined by RCRA
as hazardous and are therefore regulated by 40 CFR Parts 260-265. Other hazardous wastes gener-
ated include antineoplastic drugs (used to treat certain forms of cancer and malignant hematological
diseases), formaldehyde, solvents, mercury, and waste anesthetic gases (U.S. EPA, 1990a; 1990b).