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sales@ecomedicalwaste.comOUR PACKAGE
Complete Medical Waste Management
Biohazardous Waste
Biohazards are commonly referred to by health administration as “red bag waste.” This is any waste which has been contaminated with blood or other potentially infectious materials. Examples include blood products, body fluids contaminated with blood, and equipment that came into contact with blood.
Pharmaceutical Waste
Pharmaceuticals are any unused over the counter medications that go unused. Examples include pills, injectables, and antibiotics.
Sharps Waste
Sharps are medical devices capable of piercing the skin. Used sharps contain potentially infectious materials and it is important they are handled and disposed of properly. Examples include discarded needles, syringes, scalpels, and more.
Chemotherapy Waste
Chemotherapy waste is any waste that came into contact with chemotherapeutic agents. Examples include IV bags, personal protective equipment that came into contact with chemotherapy agents, and empty vials.
Pathological Waste
Pathological Waste is any tissues, organs, body parts, or materials involved in a medical procedure like surgery. Examples include animal carcasses, organs, tissues, human body parts, etc.
Hazardous Waste
Hazardous waste is anything classified as hazardous by the RCRA. This can be cleaning solvents, biohazards, certain chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and more found within healthcare facilities.
Servicing San Francisco and surrounding areas since 2013
San Francisco Medical Waste Disposal
Servicing 86 medical facilities in SF alone
California Service Locations
We offer biohazard and medical waste disposal services throughout California, including:
WE SERVICE ALL OF CALIFORNIA
Why Choose Eco Medical?
Eco Medical Waste provides comprehensive medical waste disposal services throughout San Francisco, including biohazardous red bag waste, sharps container disposal, pharmaceutical waste, chemotherapy waste, pathological waste, and hazardous waste removal. We serve hospitals, surgery centers, dental offices, physician practices, skilled nursing facilities, laboratories, urgent care clinics, veterinary clinics, tattoo studios, and any medical waste generator across the city. Whether your facility produces a single sharps container per month or requires weekly multi-container pickups, our team builds a right-sized collection plan that keeps you compliant and keeps costs low.
As a California-only medical waste company founded in 2013, Eco Medical brings over a decade of dedicated local expertise to every San Francisco pickup. We currently serve more than 1,500 healthcare practices statewide — 47 of them right here in San Francisco — and maintain a 99% client retention rate alongside a 100% compliance record. Our drivers travel from our Northern California transfer station up US-101 to service San Francisco on a dense, efficient route, which means faster response times, lower costs, and a team that knows your neighborhood by name. When you call (707) 840-3423, you reach a real person in California — no phone trees, no hold queues, no out-of-state call centers.
San Francisco is home to one of the most concentrated and prestigious healthcare ecosystems in the Western United States. Major institutions including UCSF Medical Center, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Medical Center, California Pacific Medical Center (Sutter Health), and the San Francisco VA Medical Center anchor a healthcare network that extends into every neighborhood — from the community clinics of the Mission District and Tenderloin to private practices in Pacific Heights, Nob Hill, and the Marina, and from research facilities in SOMA and the Financial District to dental offices in the Richmond, Sunset, and Castro. Eco Medical is proud to support this vibrant healthcare community with reliable, affordable, and fully compliant medical waste disposal.
Choose local and reap the benefits:
Readily available local service representatives - When you call Eco Medical, it rings straight to our phone numbers. You will never have to press any buttons, wait on hold, or talk to someone who is located in another state and does not know you. You call us and you get us. It’s that simple.
Lower prices - Switching to a local service like Eco Medical can save you 34% or more on medical waste services.
No Hidden Fees - What you are quoted is what you will pay. Your price is locked in for the term of our agreement and there will never be any additional cost on your bill.
Experience - With 10 years of California medical waste handling experience, you can trust us with your waste collection and disposal.
FAQ
What industries do you service?
We service medical waste for hospitals, health centers, surgery centers, skilled nursing facilities, laboratories, urgent care clinics, and any other medical waste generator in need of medical waste disposal in California.
What areas do you service?
We regularly service San Francisco, Oakland, San Rafael, Marin, Palo Alto, Berkeley, and surrounding areas for medical waste disposal pickups.
Do you supply medical waste containers?
We supply biohazard bins to all of the practices we serve. We also have an array of containers in a variety of sizes available for purchase including sharps containers, pharmaceutical waste containers, hazardous waste containers, and more.
Setting up medical waste disposal service in
San Francisco
1.
Communicate with a local service representative about your infectious waste generation details.
2.
Get a free quote for pickups at a service frequency that works best for you.
3.
Receive your compliance login information where you can easily access manifests for tracking and certificates of destruction for your records.
4.
Receive your first date of service where you will get your medical waste containers and we will collect any biomedical waste generated.
5.
Enjoy stress free pickups on a set schedule or convenient on call pickups depending on the solution you chose
Any Questions?
Call or Email Us Today!
San Francisco Medical Waste Regulations
Medical waste disposal in San Francisco is governed by a layered framework of federal, state, and local regulations. Facilities that generate medical waste — from large hospital systems to solo dental practices — must comply with all applicable requirements or face significant fines, citations, and potential license suspension.
California Medical Waste Management Act (MWMA)
The primary governing law for medical waste in California is the Medical Waste Management Act (Health and Safety Code, Division 104, Part 14), administered by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), Environmental Management Branch, Medical Waste Management Program. The MWMA establishes requirements for:
• Generator Registration: Large Quantity Generators (LQGs) producing 200+ pounds of medical waste per month must register with CDPH or their Local Enforcement Agency (LEA). Small Quantity Generators (SQGs) producing less than 200 pounds per month have simplified requirements but must still comply with segregation, storage, labeling, and disposal rules.
• Medical Waste Management Plans: LQGs must prepare and maintain a written Medical Waste Management Plan that describes waste types generated, handling procedures, training protocols, emergency spill procedures, and storage arrangements.
• Segregation & Containment: Biohazardous waste must be placed in red biohazard bags (no more than 3 pounds per bag) and stored in approved, labeled biohazard containers. Sharps must go into rigid, puncture-resistant containers labeled "SHARPS WASTE" or "BIOHAZARD" and not filled past the ¾ line. Pathological waste must be segregated from general biohazardous waste. Pharmaceutical waste follows separate containment rules depending on hazardous vs. non-hazardous classification.
• Storage Requirements: Medical waste must be stored in a designated, secured accumulation area with biohazard warning signs legible from at least 25 feet in both English and Spanish. Facilities generating 20 lbs or more per month may store waste for a maximum of 7 days at temperatures above 32°F, or up to 90 days at or below 32°F.
• Transport: Medical waste must be transported by a registered medical waste hauler using tracking documents (manifests) that accompany each shipment from generator to treatment facility.
• Treatment & Disposal: Biohazardous waste must be treated via steam sterilization (autoclave), incineration, or other CDPH-approved methods before disposal. Pharmaceutical and chemotherapy waste typically require incineration.
San Francisco Local Enforcement
In San Francisco, the San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH), Environmental Health Branch, Hazardous Materials and Waste Program serves as the Local Enforcement Agency (LEA) for medical waste. The SFDPH is authorized by CDPH to:
• Inspect medical waste generators within San Francisco County
• Issue citations and violations for non-compliance
• Recommend enforcement actions to CDPH
• Assess fees for required permits, registrations, and inspections
• Review and approve Medical Waste Management Plans
The SFDPH Environmental Health inspectors conduct both scheduled and unannounced inspections of healthcare facilities. Common inspection focus areas include proper segregation of waste streams, container labeling, accumulation area signage and security, staff training documentation, manifest record keeping, and storage time compliance.
San Francisco Medical Waste Regulations
California medical waste disposal is regulated by the California Department of Public Health, Medical Waste Management Program of San Francisco, and federal regulations.
We understand the importance of compliance with the California Medical Waste Management Act. With regulations that differ depending on the classification of waste generated, it can be hard to keep up.
That’s where we come in.
We are California’s medical waste experts who understand the regulations around generating, handling, collecting, transporting, and disposing of medical waste.
We are happy to offer audits to any San Francisco healthcare facility where we will perform a walkthrough of your facilities and ensure you are operating with compliance. We even perform waste audits where we can lower the amount of regulated medical waste your facility generates and lower the price you pay per medical waste pickup.
All biohazardous medical waste should be stored in a designated accumulation area which is secured and labeled with a biohazard warning sign legible from at least 25 feet in both English and Spanish as detailed in the MWMA.
Sharps waste disposal: Must go into a rigid and puncture proof sharps container. This container should be sealable and labeled clearly with ‘sharps waste” or with the word and symbol “BIOHAZARD.” Sharps containers should not be filled past the 3/4ths full line. Once full and completely sealed, these containers can be placed inside of your biohazard bin alongside your other biohazardous waste.
Biohazardous waste and pathological waste: Must go into a red bag (no more than 3 pounds) which is tied to prevent potential leakage and placed inside of an approved and lined biohazard container. In the state of California, pathology and biohazard waste should be segregated and their respective container should be properly labeled as “Pathology waste” or “BIOHAZARD” depending on the type of waste.
Pharmaceutical Waste: If non-hazardous, must go into a non hazardous pharmaceutical container which is labeled as “INCINERATION ONLY.” These containers should be secured to protect the contents from unauthorized users.
San Francisco Environment Department (SFE)
The San Francisco Environment Department plays a complementary role in waste management oversight:
• Safe Medicine Disposal Program: SFE administers San Francisco's safe drug disposal ordinance requiring pharmaceutical manufacturers to fund collection programs for unused household medications.
• Hazardous Waste Management: SFE coordinates household hazardous waste collection events and programs that include sharps disposal for residents.
• Environmental Sustainability Goals: San Francisco's aggressive environmental policies encourage healthcare facilities to minimize waste volume through source reduction, better segregation, and recycling of non-regulated materials — all areas where Eco Medical provides free compliance audits and waste stream optimization.
Federal Regulations
In addition to state and local law, San Francisco healthcare facilities must comply with federal regulations including:
• OSHA Bloodborne Pathogens Standard (29 CFR 1910.1030): Requires employers to protect workers from exposure to blood and other potentially infectious materials through engineering controls, work practice controls, personal protective equipment, and training.
• EPA/RCRA Hazardous Waste Regulations: Pharmaceutical waste that meets the definition of RCRA hazardous waste must be managed under federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act requirements.
• DEA Controlled Substance Disposal: Facilities handling controlled substances must follow Drug Enforcement Administration rules for disposal and reverse distribution.
• DOT Hazardous Materials Regulations (49 CFR): Medical waste transported on public roads must comply with Department of Transportation packaging, labeling, and shipping requirements.
Eco Medical Compliance Support
Navigating this regulatory landscape can be overwhelming — especially for small practices without a dedicated compliance officer. Eco Medical provides every San Francisco client with:
• Free Compliance Audits: We perform on-site walkthroughs of your facility to assess segregation practices, container placement, signage, labeling, and storage area compliance. We identify deficiencies and help you correct them before an inspector does.
• Waste Stream Optimization: Our waste audits often reveal that facilities are placing non-regulated waste into expensive biohazard containers. By improving segregation, we can reduce your regulated waste volume by 10–30%, directly lowering your disposal costs.
• Secure Online Compliance Portal: Access your pickup manifests, tracking documents, and certificates of destruction anytime through your secure portal — always ready for SFDPH inspections.
• Staff Training Guidance: We provide guidance on proper waste segregation, container handling, and spill response procedures to help your staff stay compliant with OSHA and MWMA requirements.
For questions about San Francisco medical waste regulations, contact the SFDPH Environmental Health Branch at (415) 252-3800 or Eco Medical Waste at (707) 840-3423.
San Francisco Resources:
• California Department of Public Health — Medical Waste Management Program
• San Francisco Department of Public Health — Medical Waste
• San Francisco Environment Department
• CDPH Medical Waste Management Act
• CalRecycle Pharmaceutical and Sharps Waste Stewardship
San Francisco Medical Waste Resources
For home-generated sharps disposal in
San Francisco
, you can take sharps containers to:
Golden Gate Pharmacy
(415) 661-0790
1835 Noriega Street, San Francisco, CA 94122
Alto Pharmacy
(800)874-5881
1400 Tennessee St, #2, San Francisco, CA 94107
Koshland Pharmacy
(415) 334-0600
301 Folsom St, #B, San Francisco, CA 94105
For unused household medication disposal in San Francisco, you can take them to:
Community Behavioral Health Services Pharmacy
(415) 255-3659
1380 Howard Street, #130
SF Police Department - Ingleside Station
San Francisco CA 94112
1 Sgt. John V Young Street
Save 34% or More on Medical Waste Disposal in San Francisco
Healthcare facilities across San Francisco are overpaying for medical waste disposal — often locked into expensive contracts with national providers who charge hidden fuel surcharges, environmental fees, and automatic annual price increases. Eco Medical Waste offers San Francisco practices a better path: transparent, locked-in pricing with zero hidden fees and savings that average 34% or more compared to national providers like Stericycle.
Projected Annual Savings by San Francisco Zip Code
Based on real savings data from current Eco Medical clients in San Francisco, here's what facilities in your zip code can expect:
• Dental Office in Tenderloin / Civic Center (94102) — $1,080 – $1,440/year savings
• Primary Care Clinic in SOMA (94103) — $1,920 – $2,640/year savings
• Urgent Care Center in Financial District (94104) — $3,200 – $4,800/year savings
• Veterinary Clinic in Potrero Hill / Dogpatch (94107) — $1,440 – $2,160/year savings
• Physician Practice in Chinatown / Nob Hill (94108) — $1,200 – $1,800/year savings
• Surgery Center in Polk Gulch / Russian Hill (94109) — $5,400 – $8,200/year savings
• Community Health Center in Mission District (94110) — $4,800 – $7,200/year savings
• Skilled Nursing Facility in Ingleside / Excelsior (94112) — $6,000 – $9,600/year savings
• Dermatology Practice in Castro / Noe Valley (94114) — $960 – $1,440/year savings
• Pediatric Clinic in Western Addition / Japantown (94115) — $1,080 – $1,680/year savings
• OB/GYN Practice in Parkside / Inner Sunset (94116) — $1,320 – $2,040/year savings
• Health Care Clinic in Haight-Ashbury (94117) — $1,080 – $1,560/year savings
• Ophthalmology Office in Inner Richmond (94118) — $1,200 – $1,800/year savings
• Orthopedic Clinic in Outer Richmond (94121) — $2,400 – $3,600/year savings
• Laboratory in Outer Sunset (94122) — $3,600 – $5,400/year savings
• Dental Office in Marina District (94123) — $1,080 – $1,440/year savings
• Community Clinic in Bayview-Hunters Point (94124) — $2,400 – $3,840/year savings
• Medical Center in St. Francis Wood / West Portal (94127) — $12,000 – $18,000/year savings
• Home Health Agency in Glen Park / Diamond Heights (94131) — $720 – $1,200/year savings
• Physical Therapy in Lake Merced / Stonestown (94132) — $840 – $1,320/year savings
• Tattoo Studio in North Beach / Telegraph Hill (94133) — $480 – $720/year savings
• Acupuncture Practice in Visitacion Valley / Portola (94134) — $480 – $720/year savings
Want to see your exact savings? Email your current manifest records to sales@ecomedicalwaste.com and we'll send you a line-by-line comparison showing exactly what you'll save by switching to Eco Medical.
San Francisco Neighborhoods We Service
Eco Medical Waste provides scheduled and on-call medical waste pickup across every San Francisco neighborhood, including:
Downtown & Financial District (94104, 94105, 94111) — FiDi, Embarcadero, Rincon Hill, South Beach
SOMA / South of Market (94103, 94107) — Mission Bay, Potrero Hill, Dogpatch, Showplace Square
Mission District (94110) — Inner Mission, Bernal Heights, Precita Park
Castro & Noe Valley (94114) — Upper Market, Dolores Heights, Eureka Valley
Haight-Ashbury & Western Addition (94117, 94115) — Lower Haight, NoPa, Japantown, Fillmore, Alamo Square
Tenderloin & Civic Center (94102) — Union Square, Mid-Market, Hayes Valley
Nob Hill, Russian Hill & Chinatown (94108, 94109) — Polk Gulch, Pine-Bush, Huntington Park area
North Beach & Telegraph Hill (94133) — Fisherman's Wharf, Pier 39, Coit Tower area
Marina & Cow Hollow (94123) — Fort Mason, Presidio Heights, Union Street
Pacific Heights & Laurel Heights (94115, 94118) — Presidio, Jordan Park, Lone Mountain
Richmond District (94118, 94121) — Inner Richmond, Outer Richmond, Sea Cliff, Lands End
Sunset District (94116, 94122) — Inner Sunset, Outer Sunset, Parkside, Golden Gate Heights
West Portal & Twin Peaks (94127, 94131) — Forest Hill, St. Francis Wood, Midtown Terrace, Glen Park, Diamond Heights
Excelsior & Ingleside (94112) — Crocker-Amazon, Oceanview, Balboa Terrace, Outer Mission
Bayview-Hunters Point (94124) — India Basin, Candlestick Point, Silver Terrace
Visitacion Valley & Portola (94134) — Sunnydale, McLaren Park, University Mound
Stonestown & Lake Merced (94132) — Merced Manor, Lakeside, San Francisco State University area
San Francisco's Healthcare Landscape
San Francisco is home to one of the most dynamic and concentrated healthcare ecosystems in the nation, generating significant volumes of regulated medical waste that require expert handling. The city's major healthcare institutions include:
• UCSF Medical Center (Parnassus Heights & Mission Bay) — Consistently ranked among the top 10 hospitals in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, UCSF is a 600+ bed academic medical center and a major generator of biohazardous, pharmaceutical, and chemotherapy waste.
• Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center — The city's only Level I Trauma Center, serving over 100,000 patients annually. Located in the Mission District (94110), SFGH is the safety-net hospital for the city and county.
• Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Medical Center — A major managed care facility on Geary Boulevard (94118) serving hundreds of thousands of Kaiser members across the Bay Area.
• California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC) — Sutter Health — Operating the Van Ness Campus and the new Mission Bernal Campus, CPMC is one of the largest private, not-for-profit hospitals in California.
• San Francisco VA Medical Center — Located at 4150 Clement Street (94121) in the Outer Richmond, the VA serves veterans throughout Northern California.
• Chinese Hospital — San Francisco's Chinatown-based community hospital serving the Chinese American community since 1899.
• St. Mary's Medical Center — A Dignity Health hospital on Hayes Street providing emergency, surgical, and specialty care.
Beyond these anchor institutions, San Francisco supports a vast network of community health centers, Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), outpatient surgery centers, diagnostic laboratories, dental practices, veterinary hospitals, research facilities, and specialty clinics. All of these facilities generate regulated medical waste that must be collected, transported, treated, and disposed of in full compliance with state and federal law.
Why Choose Eco Medical Over National Providers?
Many San Francisco healthcare facilities are currently contracted with large national medical waste companies. While these companies have name recognition, they come with significant drawbacks that local providers like Eco Medical eliminate:
Hidden Fees & Price Escalators: National providers are notorious for adding fuel surcharges, environmental fees, regulatory recovery fees, container rental charges, and automatic annual price increases of 3–7% that compound year after year. Eco Medical offers a single, transparent price that is locked for the full term of your agreement — no surprises, no add-ons, no annual increases.
Impersonal Service: With national companies, your call routes to an out-of-state call center staffed by representatives who have never been to San Francisco and don't know your facility. With Eco Medical, you call (707) 840-3423 and speak directly with a California-based team member who knows your practice, your schedule, and your neighborhood.
Slow Response Times: National providers juggle routes across dozens of states. Eco Medical operates exclusively in California, with a dense San Francisco route that allows us to offer faster response times for both scheduled and on-call pickups.
Contract Lock-In: Many national providers lock facilities into multi-year contracts with steep early termination penalties. Eco Medical offers straightforward agreements with favorable terms designed to earn your business through performance, not paperwork.
Local Regulatory Knowledge: California's Medical Waste Management Act is one of the most comprehensive in the nation, and San Francisco has additional local requirements administered by the San Francisco Department of Public Health. Eco Medical's team works within these regulations every single day — they're not learning California rules from a corporate playbook in another state.
Bay Area Medical Waste Disposal: How It Works
Medical waste disposal in the San Francisco Bay Area follows a strict chain of custody governed by the California Medical Waste Management Act. Here's how the Eco Medical process works for San Francisco facilities:
1. Initial Consultation & Compliance Assessment: Our local team evaluates your facility's waste generation volume, types of waste produced, current storage and segregation practices, and regulatory compliance status. We identify opportunities to reduce regulated waste volume through better segregation — which directly lowers your costs.
2. Custom Service Plan: Based on your assessment, we design a pickup schedule (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or on-call) with the right container sizes and types for your facility. We supply all biohazard bins, sharps containers, pharmaceutical waste containers, and chemotherapy waste containers at no additional charge.
3. Scheduled Pickup & Manifest Tracking: Our trained, uniformed drivers arrive on schedule, remove full containers, replace them with clean empties, and generate electronic tracking manifests. You receive copies instantly via email and through your secure online compliance portal.
4. Licensed Transport & Treatment: All medical waste is transported in our licensed vehicles to approved treatment facilities where biohazardous waste and sharps are sterilized via autoclave, and pharmaceutical, pathological, and chemotherapy waste are destroyed through high-temperature incineration.
5. Certificates of Destruction: You receive certificates of destruction for every pickup, available anytime through your compliance portal — ready for regulatory inspections or internal audits.
Our San Francisco route runs efficiently from our Northern California transfer station via US-101, and because we already serve 47 medical facilities within the city, adding your practice to our route is seamless and cost-effective — a key reason we can offer savings of 34% or more over national competitors.
San Francisco Medical Waste Fast Facts
• San Francisco population: approximately 870,000+ residents
• San Francisco County contains 30+ hospitals and medical centers
• UCSF Medical Center is ranked among the top 10 hospitals nationally
• Zuckerberg SF General is the only Level I Trauma Center in SF
• Eco Medical currently serves 86 healthcare facilities in San Francisco
• Eco Medical serves over 1,500 practices statewide across California
• Average Eco Medical client savings: 34% compared to previous provider
• Eco Medical client retention rate: 99%
• Eco Medical compliance record: 100% since 2013
Ready to see what San Francisco's most trusted local medical waste company can do for your practice? Call (707) 840-3423 today for a free, no-obligation quote — or email your current invoices to sales@ecomedicalwaste.com for an exact savings comparison.
We used to use a National Company but they just kept jacking our fees up all the time. We switched to Eco Medical Waste and they cut our invoices in half.
Eco Medical Waste is always professional and timely. We appreciate their business and services.
Let’s get started
We offer medical waste disposal and management in all of California. Eco Medical was founded in far Northern California and has rapidly expanded to cover the entirety of California.
