# Medical waste tracking software that matches every container to its returned manifest

> Medical waste tracking is the cradle to grave record of regulated medical waste from the point of generation, through packaging and transport, to treatment or disposal. The federal Medical Waste Tracking Act program ran only from June 24, 1989 to June 21, 1991 in 4 states and Puerto Rico, so the rules are now written state by state. Neurobird holds the container level record and matches outbound manifests to their returned copies.

- URL: https://neurobird.com/medicalwaste/
- Product: Neurobird Medical Waste Tracking Audit Platform
- Niche: medical waste tracking
- Buyer: hospitals, clinics and medical waste haulers
- Status: in development, open for early access
- Updated: 2026-08-21

## What Neurobird Medical Waste Tracking does

- Track containers by waste stream and location rather than by invoice line
- Match every outbound manifest to its returned copy and flag the ones that never came back
- Hold OSHA bloodborne pathogens training records beside the people who handle the waste
- Show weight by stream and by department, so segregation problems appear in the data

## How it works

1. **Record at the point of generation** Containers are issued to a department and a stream, so the record starts where the risk is highest rather than at the loading dock.
2. **Manifest out and match back** Each outbound shipment carries its containers, and the returned copy is matched to it. Anything unmatched after 35 days lands on a list.
3. **Read the segregation** Weight by stream and by department shows where general waste is going into the regulated stream, which is the line item that grows.

## From the source material

> All regulated waste shall either be incinerated or decontaminated by a method such as autoclaving known to effectively destroy bloodborne pathogens.

Source: osha.gov, https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910.1030

## Industry context

- **1991** Year the federal Medical Waste Tracking Act program expired, after which states became the primary regulators of medical waste. (source: US EPA, medical waste, https://www.epa.gov/rcra/medical-waste)
- **1988** Year Congress passed the Medical Waste Tracking Act, which established a cradle to grave system built on a generator initiated tracking form. (source: US EPA archive, Medical Waste Tracking Act, https://archive.epa.gov/epawaste/nonhaz/industrial/medical/web/html/tracking.html)
- **15 percent** Share of health care waste WHO classifies as hazardous, against 85 percent general waste that costs far less to dispose of when it is segregated correctly. (source: World Health Organization, health care waste, https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/health-care-waste)
- **1910.1030** The OSHA bloodborne pathogens standard governing containers, labelling, training and exposure control wherever regulated waste is handled. (source: 29 CFR 1910.1030, eCFR, https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/part-1910/section-1910.1030)
- **173.134** The DOT section defining regulated medical waste as a Division 6.2 material and setting how it may be offered for transport. (source: 49 CFR 173.134, eCFR, https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/section-173.134)

## Pricing

- Single site: $160 per site, per month
- Multi site: $340 per site, per month
- Health system: $640 per site, per month

## Questions

### What is medical waste tracking?

Medical waste tracking is the cradle to grave record of regulated medical waste from the point it is generated, through packaging, storage and transport, to treatment or disposal. The record normally includes a generator initiated tracking document, the transporter, the destination facility and a returned copy confirming what happened to the waste.

### Is there a federal medical waste tracking rule?

No. The Medical Waste Tracking Act of 1988 created a 2 year federal program that took effect on June 24, 1989 and expired on June 21, 1991, and it applied only in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Puerto Rico. Since then medical waste has been regulated primarily by state environmental and health departments.

### Which federal rules still apply?

Several, from different agencies. The OSHA bloodborne pathogens standard at 29 CFR 1910.1030 governs containers, labelling, training and exposure control. DOT rules at 49 CFR 173.134 cover regulated medical waste as a Division 6.2 material in transport. CDC guidance covers handling inside the facility.

### How much of a hospital's waste is actually regulated?

Less than most people assume. WHO puts about 85 percent of health care waste in the general non hazardous category, leaving roughly 15 percent that is infectious, chemical or otherwise hazardous. Poor segregation moves cheap waste into the expensive stream, which is where the invoice grows.

### Does this replace our hauler's paperwork?

No. It holds your side of it. The hauler's manifests still exist, and this matches them to the containers you generated, so a missing return copy is your finding rather than an inspector's.

## Sources

- [US EPA, medical waste](https://www.epa.gov/rcra/medical-waste)
- [US EPA archive, Medical Waste Tracking Act of 1988](https://archive.epa.gov/epawaste/nonhaz/industrial/medical/web/html/tracking.html)
- [29 CFR 1910.1030, bloodborne pathogens](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/part-1910/section-1910.1030)
- [49 CFR 173.134, regulated medical waste](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/section-173.134)

## Contact

- office@neurobird.com
- https://neurobird.com/