Memphis, TN Public Health Rules: Syringe Disposal (2026)

Section 9-56-6(B) covers 'pathogenic and radioactive waste' generated by hospitals and institutions. It must be disposed of by the generating hospital or institution under conditions the health department approves; if the health department approves a treatment method that lets the waste go out with ordinary city collection, or the generator qualifies by volume classification, the hospital can dispose of it as a special private collector or through a licensed private collector instead. The section specifically addresses pathological waste from physicians' clinics, dental clinics, blood banks and medical laboratories: it must be kept separate from normal waste, placed in durable disposable bags that can be tied and sealed once full, and stored in containers the director of solid waste has approved while the bags are being filled.

Those containers must sit in places the public cannot access, and can only be set out at the collection point on the regularly scheduled collection day, not left out generally. The sharps-specific rule is explicit: needles must be separated from disposable syringes by breaking them off at the hub immediately after use, before the waste goes into the storage container. Any fluid waste may be discharged into the sewer system only under the guidelines of the city's separate sewer use ordinance. Storage, collection and disposal of this pathological waste must also comply with applicable local, state and federal regulations beyond this section.