National Safe Needle Disposal Program Launched

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National Safe Needle Disposal Program Launched

Major Corporations Move to Cut Public Health Risks From Improperly Disposed

TEXAS, HOUSTON, Oct. 16 -/E-Wire/Business Wire/-- Sharps Compliance Corp. and subsidiaries ("Sharps") (OTCBB:SCOM), a leading provider of cost-effective logistical and training solutions for the healthcare, hospitality and residential markets, announced today that it is joining two other U.S. corporate leaders in their fields to launch a new nationwide program to help reduce risks of injury and infection in the community posed by improper disposal of used needles and syringes outside healthcare settings.

Sharps Compliance, the leading mail back disposal company, Waste Management, the country's largest waste company, and BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company), the world's largest syringe manufacturer, next month will offer the nation's 8 million in-home syringe users a safe mail back method for disposing of their used needles and syringes.

More than 3 billion injections and other skin punctures occur in the home every year in the course of treating conditions such as diabetes, hepatitis, multiple sclerosis and allergies. Only a fraction of these needles and syringes are disposed of properly because there has been no practical method to safely dispose of them. In the solid waste stream, these needles pose a risk for needle stick injury or infection to children, waste workers and entire communities.

-- The Sharps Disposal By Mail System(TM) is a comprehensive home- or commercial-settings solution for collecting, transporting and disposing of needles and syringes by collecting needles in puncture-proof sharps containers, like those used by health professionals, and treating them at a dedicated sharps destruction facility.

"When the leading waste services company and the largest syringe manufacturer join together to offer a safe disposal solution, we've taken a huge first step in educating self-injectors and the public about the importance of proper needle disposal," said Dr. Burt Kunik, chairman and CEO of Sharps. "This program is a first."

-- Waste Management is teaming up with Sharps to market the mail back disposal system to Waste Management's 25 million residential and two million commercial customers in the U.S.

"We want to bring added value to our customers and this product is an excellent fit for us. It provides a cost-effective means of removing needles and syringes from the residential waste stream in order to protect communities and our curbside workers," said A. Maurice Myers, chairman, president and CEO of Waste Management Inc.

-- BD will make the Sharps Disposal-By-Mail System available nationally through more than 55,000 pharmacies and promote safe sharps disposal through a national educational campaign.

"This program is one of the model solutions to the problem of improperly disposed needles in the community," said Robert J. Singley, vice president of Sales and Marketing at BD Consumer Health Care. "The combined efforts of Waste Management and BD will make sharps disposal readily available to those who need it."

BD is a medical technology company that manufactures and sells a broad range of supplies, devices and systems for use by healthcare professionals, medical research institutions, industry and the general public. BD manufactures and sells a broad range of medical supplies, devices, laboratory equipment and diagnostic products.

Waste Management Inc. is its industry's leading provider of comprehensive waste management and environmental services. Based in Houston, Waste Management serves municipal, commercial, industrial and residential customers throughout North America.

Headquartered in Houston, Sharps partners with companies and institutions to develop cost-effective logistical solutions for healthcare, hospitality and residential markets. Sharps' systems and services allow a wide variety of regulated industries to focus on their core competencies and enable them to better manage assets, regulatory compliance and employee education. Sharps Compliance Corp.'s common stock trades on the OTC Bulletin Board under the symbol SCOM.

Any forward-looking statements by Sharps Compliance Corp. ("The Company") in this release are made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that actual results may differ substantially from such forward-looking statements, which involve risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, continued acceptance of the Company's products and services in the marketplace, competitive factors, new products and technological changes, dependence upon third-party vendors, customer relations, government supervision and regulation, changes in industry practices, changes in third-party expense reimbursement procedures, and other risks detailed in the Company's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Note: A Photo is available at URL: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/photoblob.sh?pw.101602/bb7

Sharps Compliance Corp.

Sommers & Associates, Houston

Melanie Fahey, 713/222-1600

http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/photoblob.sh?pw.101602/bb7

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