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Senate Passes Bill Requiring Marking of Small-Quantity Infectious Waste; Dentists Voice Cost Concerns
Summary
Senate Bill 187, which lowers thresholds and requires biohazard marking of small-quantity infectious waste (targeting needle-stick risks for waste handlers), passed after floor debate about costs and rulemaking authority.
The Utah Senate on Feb. 21 passed Senate Bill 187, an amendment to state law that would bring small generators of infectious waste — notably dental and medical offices — under regulations requiring that infectious material be packaged in clearly marked biohazard bags.
Sponsor Senator Wharton said the measure is intended to reduce accidental needle-stick injuries among solid-waste workers by ensuring that infectious waste is identifiable when picked up and handled. "All this would say is basically put in a red bag," Wharton told colleagues, adding the marked bag would alert garbage handlers and allow them to take precautions. Wharton said most clinics already take steps to sterilize and segregate this waste and estimated an average extra handling cost could be about $15 a month for some facilities.
Dentists and representatives of small medical offices raised concerns on the floor that the bill could impose new costs and logistical burdens, especially in rural areas where specialized pickup services might not be available and travel distances to licensed disposal sites are long. Senators asked whether the bill would effectively require private pickup services and whether the language gave the Department of Environmental Quality broad rulemaking authority; Wharton clarified the bill does not mandate special pickups and that marked bags can still be taken to landfills with facilities to accept infectious waste.
Senator Hilliard and others urged clarity about the rulemaking language and suggested interim study or clearer statutory text; Wharton offered to remove a specific regulatory line if it was causing concern. After floor exchanges and consideration of clarifying language, the Senate called the question and approved SB187 on third reading with an affirmative tally recorded in the roll call. The clerk announced that SB187 had passed the third-reading calendar with the recorded ayes.
Next steps: The enacted change will obligate small generators of infectious waste to mark and segregate such materials; rulemaking and implementation details will be set by the responsible agency where authorized by statute.
