What is a Medical Waste Manifest?

A medical waste manifest is a historical document that records the disposal process from cradle to grave. In the world of infectious material, this means recording biohazard waste from the time of collection to its final destruction.

Whether a MERI customer receives a red biohazard container in person or by mail, they’ll receive a manifest. It helps us to track the waste as it makes its way to our licensed treatment facility. It documents:

• the time of collection
• the time of transport
• weight of the material
• treatment and final disposal location.

Manifest Generators Take Note

When someone uses a MERI biohazard container, they agree to abide by specific regulations around medical waste. These rules are printed on the bottom of the manifest. It sits right above the line a representative of the facility must sign.

Pick Up Customers – Electronic Manifest

For our in-person collection customers, we get this signature on our electronic manifest when we pick up the waste. Unless, of course, we have an agent letter on file for your facility authorizing MERI to sign for the company representative if they are occupied elsewhere when we arrive to collect it.

Mailback Customers – Paper Manifest

Instructions on MERI’s mailback kits ask them to locate and sign the paper manifest on the side of the prepaid shipping box. This must be done before sending the kit back to us through the US Post office.

What are you signing exactly on MERI’s Mailback Kits?

Before putting your name on anything, you must understand what you are signing. So, for MERI’s medical waste mailback customers, here’s a quick breakdown of the manifest declaration paragraph as shown below:

“I hereby declare the contents are fully and accurately described as UN 3291 Regulated Medical Waste…”

This means that you agree only to ship biohazard material such as needles, lancets, and other infectious waste. You are not placing hazardous waste, pharmaceuticals, controlled substances, batteries, or lightbulbs inside the box.

Also, you are placing items that can puncture inside the DOT-approved PGII sharps container. In addition, if using our larger biohazard collection container, such as an 18 or 28-gallon, you are not placing any loose sharps inside it. Only sharps containers or other infectious waste can go inside the larger mailback containers.

…are packaged, marked, and labeled in accordance with international and governmental regulations.”

You agree to follow the instructions inside the kit to properly package it up before being sent off for disposal. This includes:

• Only using the PGII container inside of the kit
• Filling it no more than the container’s full waste line
• Sealing the lid on the container, then placing this DOT-approved container inside the plastic bag before tying it shut. Place this bag inside the inner brown box and the inner brown box inside the return shipping box.
• Ensuring you are not over the weight limit printed on the side of the box
• Signing the manifest found on the side of the box
• And finally, use the U.S. Postal Service (not UPS) to ship your mailback kit back to MERI.

Dissecting a MERI Manifest

This example highlights what you might see in a typical manifest.

As you can see, it shows:

1. Emergency contact to call in case of a container spill
2. The manifest tracking number
3. Name and contact info of the waste generator
4. Estimated pounds being shipped for disposal
5. The type of waste and container being used for disposal
6. Generator signature
7. Transporter (license number, date, and signature stamp) when collected/received.
8. Treatment Facility (license number, date, and signature stamp) when collected/received.
9. Disposal Facility (license number, date, and signature stamp) when disposed

MERI Keeps Manifest on File Electronically

All MERI’s pick-up customers have access to their electronic manifests. They are kept in the system for five years through our Genesis customer portal. Additionally, for our mailback customers, all mailback kits come with an additional paper manifest for the customer to keep on file should they need to document their waste is being properly disposed of at a licensed treatment facility.

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