Stericycle launches reengineered sharps waste and controlled substance wastage containers

Stericycle Inc., Bannockburn, Illinois, a provider of medical waste management and secure information destruction solutions, has launched its reengineered 1-gallon Safedrop sharps mail-back and 1-gallon CSRX controlled substance wastage containers.  

Stericycle's redesigned Safedrop containers include everything Stericycle customers need to package sharps waste for transportation, treatment and disposal, the company says.  

The reengineered CSRX containers are designed to help hospitals prevent diversion when disposing of controlled substance wastage. The one-way disposal path securely captures pharmaceutical waste to prevent unauthorized access to disposed medications. It also helps to reduce the contamination of community waterways compared with disposal down the drain, the company adds. 

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According to Stericycle, the new 1-gallon containers retain all the features of Stericycle’s current containers while prioritizing sustainability, compatibility and ease of use. The new containers use 40 percent less plastic compared with prior containers, are compatible with current Stericycle brackets and mounts and have tethered lids to allow easy container closing with a single handle, the company says.  

"We continue to make significant investments in our container portfolio to bring health care providers innovative, sustainable services," Cory White, Stericycle executive vice president and chief commercial officer, says. "As a company committed to protecting people and our communities, Stericycle's launch of these reengineered containers further demonstrates the positive impact our solutions have in reducing plastic without compromising product integrity for our customers." 

In the U.S., rollout of the redesigned Safedrop containers began in May, while rollout of the CSRX containers began in June. In Canada, the CSRX containers were made available in May; however, the Safedrop containers are not yet available.  

The reengineering of Safedrop and CSRX containers is a continuation of Stericycle's broader container modernization strategy to transition from more than 150 container types to less than 20, the company says. Last spring, Stericycle released its new Safeshield antimicrobial medical waste containers, a line of standardized containers designed for the storage and transport of regulated medical waste. Since April 2022, more than 280,000 Safeshield containers have been deployed in North America, with the rollout anticipated to be completed over the next three years, Steric