HB6071 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB096 19446 JDS 34838 b

96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2009 and 2010
HB6071

Introduced 2/11/2010, by Rep. Mike Boland

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act
415 ILCS 5/3.227 new
415 ILCS 5/3.360	was 415 ILCS 5/3.84
415 ILCS 5/56.1	from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1056.1

Creates the Home-Generated Sharps Management Act. Prohibits, beginning September 1, 2011, any person from knowingly placing home-generated sharps waste in certain containers. Provides that, beginning September 1, 2011, home-generated sharps waste must be transported for disposal only in a sharps container, or other containers approved by the Department, and delivered for disposal only at certain locations. Provides that, upon being delivered to those locations, home-generated sharps waste shall be deemed potentially infectious medical waste and may be disposed of by the owners and operators of those facilities as is provided in Title XV of the Environmental Protection Act. Defines "Agency", "construction or demolition debris", "Department", "home-generated sharps consolidation point", "home-generated sharps waste", "household hazardous waste", "household hazardous waste collection facility", "landscape waste", "roll-off container", "sharps container", and "solid waste". Amends the Environmental Protection Act to make corresponding changes.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning safety.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Home-Generated Sharps Management Act.

Section 5. Legislative findings. The General Assembly finds and declares all of the following:

(1) The development of a safe, convenient, and cost-effective infrastructure for the collection of millions of home-generated sharps, and the public education programs to promote safe disposal of these sharps, will require a cooperative effort by the Illinois Department of Public Health, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, local governments, large employers, dispensing pharmacies, manufacturers of sharps, and the health care, solid waste, and pharmaceutical industries.

(2) Because mail-back programs utilizing containers that have been approved by the United States Postal Service offer one of the most convenient alternatives for the collection and destruction of home-generated sharps, local government and private sector stakeholders are encouraged to implement mail-back programs and to promote their use.

(3) Local governments, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, the Illinois Department of Public Health, solid waste service providers, and manufacturers and dispensers of sharps are further encouraged to include information on their websites, and in other public materials, that identifies locations that accept home-generated sharps and provide information about available mail-back programs.

(4) It is the intent of the General Assembly that the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and the Illinois Department of Public Health, to the extent resources are available, continue to monitor the State's progress in developing the infrastructure for the collection of home-generated sharps and inform the appropriate policy committees of any need for subsequent legislation to achieve the purposes of this Act.

Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Agency" means the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.

"Construction or demolition debris" has the same meaning as under Section 3.160 of the Environmental Protection Act.

"Department" means the Illinois Department of Public Health.

"Home-generated sharps consolidation point" means a location or facility, including, for example, a sharps collection station, that has been approved by the Agency, Department, or both as a point of consolidation for the collection of home-generated sharps waste for transport and treatment as potentially infectious medical waste.

"Home-generated sharps waste" means hypodermic needles, pen needles, intravenous needles, lancets, and other devices that are used to penetrate the skin for the delivery of medications and that have been discarded from a household, including a multifamily residence or household.

"Household hazardous waste" means any hazardous waste generated incidental to owning or maintaining a place of residence. "Household hazardous waste" does not include any waste generated in the course of operating a business at a residence.

"Household hazardous waste collection facility" means a facility operated by the Agency, Department, or one of their contractors, for the purpose of collecting, handling, treating, storing, recycling, or disposing of household hazardous waste.

"Landscape waste" has the same meaning as under Section 3.270 of the Environmental Protection Act.

"Roll-off container" means a metal container with rails for solid wastes or recyclable materials that is customarily moved and emptied using heavy equipment, such as, but not limited to, roll-off hoist equipped trucks.

"Sharps collection station" has the same meaning as under Section 3.458 of the Environmental Protection Act.

"Sharps container" means a rigid puncture-resistant container, which, when sealed, is leak-resistant and cannot be reopened without great difficulty.

"Solid waste" has the same meaning as under Section 3.470 of the Environmental Protection Act.

Section 15. Prohibition on disposal of sharps. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, beginning September 1, 2011, no person shall knowingly place home-generated sharps waste in any of the following containers:

(1) Any container used for the collection of solid waste, recyclable materials, or landscape waste.

(2) Any container used for the commercial collection of solid waste or recyclable materials from business establishments.

(3) Any roll-off container used for the collection of solid waste, construction or demolition debris, landscape waste, or recyclable materials.

Section 20. Transportation of sharps. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, beginning September 1, 2011, home-generated sharps waste shall be transported for disposal only in a sharps container, or other container approved by the Department, and shall only be delivered for disposal at the following:

(1) A household hazardous waste facility.

(2) A home-generated sharps consolidation point.

(3) A facility owned or operated by a potentially infectious medical waste generator.

(4) A facility, approved by the Department, that receives, through mail-back containers, home-generated sharps waste for disposal.

Section 25. Disposal as potentially infectious medical waste. Upon being received by a household hazardous waste facility, a home-generated sharps consolidation point, a facility that generates potentially infectious medical waste, or a facility, approved by the Department, that receives, through mail-back containers, home-generated sharps waste for disposal, the home-generated sharps waste that is received shall be deemed potentially infectious medical waste and may be disposed of by the owners and operators of those facilities only as is provided in Title XV of the Environmental Protection Act.

Section 30. The Environmental Protection Act is amended by adding Section 3.227 and by changing Sections 3.360 and 56.1 as follows:

(415 ILCS 5/3.227 new)

Sec. 3.227. Home-generated sharps waste. "Home-generated sharps waste" means hypodermic needles, pen needles, intravenous needles, lancets, and other devices that are used to penetrate the skin for the delivery of medications and that have been discarded from a household, including a multifamily residence or household.

(415 ILCS 5/3.360) (was 415 ILCS 5/3.84)

Sec. 3.360. Potentially infectious medical waste.

(a) "Potentially infectious medical waste" means the following types of waste generated in connection with the diagnosis, treatment (i.e., provision of medical services), or immunization of human beings or animals; research pertaining to the provision of medical services; or the production or testing of biologicals:

(1) Cultures and stocks. This waste shall include but not be limited to cultures and stocks of agents infectious to humans, and associated biologicals; cultures from medical or pathological laboratories; cultures and stocks of infectious agents from research and industrial laboratories; wastes from the production of biologicals; discarded live or attenuated vaccines; or culture dishes and devices used to transfer, inoculate, or mix cultures.

(2) Human pathological wastes. This waste shall include tissue, organs, and body parts (except teeth and the contiguous structures of bone and gum); body fluids that are removed during surgery, autopsy, or other medical procedures; or specimens of body fluids and their containers.

(3) Human blood and blood products. This waste shall include discarded human blood, blood components (e.g., serum and plasma), or saturated material containing free flowing blood or blood components.

(4) Used sharps. This waste shall include but not be limited to discarded sharps used in animal or human patient care, medical research, or clinical or pharmaceutical laboratories; home-generated sharps waste; hypodermic, intravenous, or other medical needles; hypodermic or intravenous syringes; Pasteur pipettes; scalpel blades; or blood vials. This waste shall also include but not be limited to other types of broken or unbroken glass (including slides and cover slips) in contact with infectious agents.

(5) Animal waste. Animal waste means discarded materials, including carcasses, body parts, body fluids, blood, or bedding originating from animals inoculated during research, production of biologicals, or pharmaceutical testing with agents infectious to humans.

(6) Isolation waste. This waste shall include discarded materials contaminated with blood, excretions, exudates, and secretions from humans that are isolated to protect others from highly communicable diseases. "Highly communicable diseases" means those diseases identified by the Board in rules adopted under subsection (e) of Section 56.2 of this Act.

(7) Unused sharps. This waste shall include but not be limited to the following unused, discarded sharps: hypodermic, intravenous, or other needles; hypodermic or intravenous syringes; or scalpel blades.

(b) Potentially infectious medical waste does not include:

(1) waste generated as general household waste;

(2) waste (except for sharps) for which the infectious potential has been eliminated by treatment; or

(3) sharps that meet both of the following conditions:

(A) the infectious potential has been eliminated from the sharps by treatment; and

(B) the sharps are rendered unrecognizable by treatment.

(Source: P.A. 92-574, eff. 6-26-02.)

(415 ILCS 5/56.1) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1056.1)

Sec. 56.1. Acts prohibited.

(A) No person shall:

(a) Cause or allow the disposal of any potentially infectious medical waste. Sharps other than home-generated sharps waste may be disposed in any landfill permitted by the Agency under Section 21 of this Act to accept municipal waste for disposal, if both:

(1) the infectious potential has been eliminated from the sharps by treatment; and

(2) the sharps are packaged in accordance with Board regulations.

(b) Cause or allow the delivery of any potentially infectious medical waste for transport, storage, treatment, or transfer except in accordance with Board regulations.

(c) Beginning July 1, 1992, cause or allow the delivery of any potentially infectious medical waste to a person or facility for storage, treatment, or transfer that does not have a permit issued by the agency to receive potentially infectious medical waste, unless no permit is required under subsection (g)(1).

(d) Beginning July 1, 1992, cause or allow the delivery or transfer of any potentially infectious medical waste for transport unless:

(1) the transporter has a permit issued by the Agency to transport potentially infectious medical waste, or the transporter is exempt from the permit requirement set forth in subsection (f)(l).

(2) a potentially infectious medical waste manifest is completed for the waste if a manifest is required under subsection (h).

(e) Cause or allow the acceptance of any potentially infectious medical waste for purposes of transport, storage, treatment, or transfer except in accordance with Board regulations.

(f) Beginning July 1, 1992, conduct any potentially infectious medical waste transportation operation:

(1) Without a permit issued by the Agency to transport potentially infectious medical waste. No permit is required under this provision (f)(1) for:

(A) a person transporting potentially infectious medical waste generated solely by that person's activities;

(B) noncommercial transportation of less than 50 pounds of potentially infectious medical waste at any one time; or

(C) the U.S. Postal Service.

(2) In violation of any condition of any permit issued by the Agency under this Act.

(3) In violation of any regulation adopted by the Board.

(4) In violation of any order adopted by the Board under this Act.

(g) Beginning July 1, 1992, conduct any potentially infectious medical waste treatment, storage, or transfer operation:

(1) without a permit issued by the Agency that specifically authorizes the treatment, storage, or transfer of potentially infectious medical waste. No permit is required under this subsection (g) or subsection (d)(1) of Section 21 for any:

(A) Person conducting a potentially infectious medical waste treatment, storage, or transfer operation for potentially infectious medical waste generated by the person's own activities that are treated, stored, or transferred within the site where the potentially infectious medical waste is generated.

(B) Hospital that treats, stores, or transfers only potentially infectious medical waste generated by its own activities or by members of its medical staff.

(C) Sharps collection station that is operated in accordance with Section 56.7.

(2) in violation of any condition of any permit issued by the Agency under this Act.

(3) in violation of any regulation adopted by the Board.

(4) In violation of any order adopted by the Board under this Act.

(h) Transport potentially infectious medical waste unless the transporter carries a completed potentially infectious medical waste manifest. No manifest is required for the transportation of:

(1) potentially infectious medical waste being transported by generators who generated the waste by their own activities, when the potentially infectious medical waste is transported within or between sites or facilities owned, controlled, or operated by that person;

(2) less than 50 pounds of potentially infectious medical waste at any one time for a noncommercial transportation activity; or

(3) potentially infectious medical waste by the U.S. Postal Service.

(i) Offer for transportation, transport, deliver, receive or accept potentially infectious medical waste for which a manifest is required, unless the manifest indicates that the fee required under Section 56.4 of this Act has been paid.

(j) Beginning January 1, 1994, conduct a potentially infectious medical waste treatment operation at an incinerator in existence on the effective date of this Title in violation of emission standards established for these incinerators under Section 129 of the Clean Air Act (42 USC 7429), as amended.

(B) In making its orders and determinations relative to penalties, if any, to be imposed for violating subdivision (A)(a) of this Section, the Board, in addition to the factors in Sections 33(c) and 42(h) of this Act, or the Court shall take into consideration whether the owner or operator of the landfill reasonably relied on written statements from the person generating or treating the waste that the waste is not potentially infectious medical waste.

(Source: P.A. 94-641, eff. 8-22-05.)