Local resources for proper medical

waste disposal
San Joaquin
County
St. Josephs

Household

Medical

Hazardous

Center

Waste
Consolidation
Facility
Stockton, Lodi,
Manteca,

City

Stockton

Lathrop,
Escalon, Ripon,
Tracy

Address

1800 North
California
Stockton, CA

7850 R.A.
Bridgeford
Street,

95204

Stockton,

Phone

(209) 943-

(209) 468-

Number

2000

3066

California

Test your knowledge!

Where do you throw away used
needles?
a) In the trash
b) On the ground
c) Sharps container
True or False To throw away
unwanted drugs, you can mix them
with cat litter first.
a) True
b) False
True or False Medications can be
flushed down the toilet.
a) True
b) False

There is a
sharps drop

References

Hours of
operation

the parking

Open Thursday

garage, open

Through

daily. Inform

Saturday

the parking

9:00a.m. ~

attendant that

3:00p.m.

you have
sharps to drop
off.

Needles and Other Sharps (Safe

Disposal Outside of Healthcare
Settings)
fda.gov/safesharpsdisposal
Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care
Products (PPCP) in Water
water.epa.gov/scitech/swguidance/
ppcp/

Answers: c, a, b

box located in

PROPER
MEDICAL
WASTE
DISPOSAL
Group W8

You have easy disposal options

Have you ever wondered what

to do with your expired
medications or used needles?
And why does it even matter?
Expired or unused medications cant
just be thrown away in the trash or
flushed down the toilet. Neither can
needles or lancets used to inject
medication into the body or draw
blood. Proper disposal of these items
is very important for your safety, that
of those around you and your
community. Children and animals
can easily get into drugs left around
the house or thrown in the trash.
Flushing medications down the toilet
can ruin the water supply. Throwing
used needles away in the trash can
lead to needle sticks and the possible
spread of diseases by blood. Even
though you cant throw away medical

What are sharps?

Needles, syringes, lancets, and autoinjectors are all sharps.

Drug take-back programs for

medications and sharps

What are appropriate sharps

containers?

You can call the household trash and

recycling service in your area to ask
if they offer a drug take-back
program. Some counties will collect
unwanted drugs to take to a central
location for you.

They are FDA approved plastic

containers. Each has a line that tells
you when the container is full and
ready for disposal.

Household disposal steps for

medications
1. Take your prescription
drugs out of their
original containers.
Remove identifiable
information from
container and dispose.
2. Mix drugs with
undesirable
substances, like cat
litter or used coffee
grounds.
3. Put the mixture into a
disposable container
with a lid or into a
sealable bag.

How to dispose of sharps

1. Place all your sharps in a sharps
disposal container immediately
after use. Never reuse sharps or
throw away in trash bins.
2. Dispose of sharps containers at:
Household hazardous waste
collection sites
Mail-back programs
Residential special waste pick
up
Designated drop boxes
If you are accidentally
stuck by a sharp, wash
the exposed area right
away with soap and
water. Seek immediate
medical attention.