'Significant and conflicting': Making sense of the latest hazardous waste rules
Medical Environment Update, November 1, 2017
This is an excerpt from a member only article. To read the article in its entirety, please login or subscribe to Medical Environment Update.
Implementing a hazardous waste management program requires five primary steps
Inspectors from the federal EPA and comparable state agencies have been keeping tabs on entities that generate hazardous waste pursuant to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) since the law passed in 1976. Over the years, some states and municipalities have been more aggressive than others.
More recently, however, due to newfound concerns over proper RCRA management of pharmaceutical wastes in the healthcare sector, inspectors from federal, state, and local agencies alike have increased their scrutiny of the waste streams coming out of healthcare facilities nationwide, says Darrell J. Oman, program manager of consulting services for Stericycle Environmental Solutions.
"This has resulted in increased enforcement activity (such as notice-of-violation letters and sometimes financial fines) in nearly every state," says Oman. "Besides the risk of financial fines for noncompliance with environmental laws (including RCRA), healthcare facilities and their leadership are subject to negative publicity and significant internal organizational costs."
Those costs could include a drain on your staff and leadership team's time, expenses related to outside legal counsel or environmental compliance experts, and capital costs for systems, supplies, or infrastructure purchases or modifications, he says. That's why you should invest time and energy up front to ensure your hazardous waste management is keeping up with the times.
This is an excerpt from a member only article. To read the article in its entirety, please login or subscribe to Medical Environment Update.
Related Products
Most Popular
- Articles
-
- CMS seeks comment on quality measures
- Practice the six rights of medication administration
- Don't forget the three checks in medication administration
- Note similarities and differences between HCPCS, CPT® codes
- Nursing responsibilities for managing pain
- Q&A: Primary, principal, and secondary diagnoses
- CMS creates web portal for questions about 1135 waivers, PHE
- ICD-10-CM coma, stroke codes require more specific documentation
- OB services: Coding inside and outside of the package
- The consequences of an incomplete medical record
- E-mailed
-
- Coronavirus vaccination: 4 best practices for communicating with patients
- Q&A: Pressure ulcer POA code confusion resolved
- Neurological checks for head injuries
- Keyes Q&A: Generator lighting, fire dampers, eyewash stations, ISLM fire drills
- Including 46600 in E/M leveling systems
- How to get reimbursed for restorative nursing
- Fetal non-stress tests represent important part of maternal and fetal health
- Coding, billing, and documentation tips for teaching physicians, interns, residents, and students
- Coding tip: Know how to correctly code each procedure an otolaryngologist can perform on turbinates
- Coding Clinic reiterates guidelines for provider documentation
- Searched