How Do You Dispose of Needles?

The FDA says never to throw away loose needles and other sharps in trash cans or recycling bins, and never to flush them down the toilet. It says to use an FDA-cleared sharps disposal container if possible, and that if one is not available, some organizations and community guidelines recommend using a heavy-duty plastic household container as an alternative. It warns that overfilling a sharps disposal container increases the risk of accidental needle-stick injury, and says that when the container is about three-quarters full you should follow your community guidelines for getting rid of it.

The FDA says you may be able to drop off sharps disposal containers at collection sites such as doctors' offices, hospitals, pharmacies, health departments, medical waste facilities and police or fire stations, where services may be free or have a small fee, and at local public household hazardous waste collection sites that also commonly accept household cleaners, paints and motor oil.

State rules vary. Massachusetts health officials announced a statewide ban on disposing of needles, syringes and lancets in household trash that took effect on July 1, 2012. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency says that if you cannot get to a household sharps collection site or mail your sharps, you may place a labeled, closed and taped container in your normal trash, an option it discourages for safety reasons unless a collection site or mail-back program is not practical, and that containers with sharps should never go in recycling.