Public Act 0641 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB0523 Enrolled LRB094 03776 RSP 33785 b

Public Act 094-0641

AN ACT concerning safety.

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

Section 5. The Department of Public Health Powers and Duties Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois is amended by adding Section 2310-252 as follows:

(20 ILCS 2310/2310-252 new)

Sec. 2310-252. Guidelines for needle disposal; education.

(a) The Illinois Department of Public Health, in cooperation with the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, must create guidelines for the proper disposal of hypodermic syringes, needles, and other sharps used for self-administration purposes that are consistent with the available guidelines regarding disposal for home health care products provided by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. In establishing these guidelines, the Department shall promote flexible and convenient disposal methods appropriate to the area and level of services available to the person disposing of the hypodermic syringe, needle, or other sharps. The Department guidelines shall encourage the use of safe disposal programs that include, but are not limited to, the following:

(1) drop box or supervised collection sites;

(2) sharps mail-back programs;

(3) syringe exchange programs; and

(4) at-home needle destruction devices.

(b) The Illinois Department of Public Health must develop educational materials regarding the safe disposal of hypodermic syringes, needles, and other sharps and distribute copies of these educational materials to pharmacies and the public. The educational materials must include information regarding safer injection, HIV prevention, proper methods for the disposal of hypodermic syringes, needles, and other sharps, and contact information for obtaining treatment for drug abuse and addiction.

Section 10. The Environmental Protection Act is amended by changing Section 56.1 and by adding Sections 3.458 and 56.7 as follows:

(415 ILCS 5/3.458 new)

Sec. 3.458. Sharps collection station.

(a) "Sharps collection station" means a designated area at an applicable facility where (i) hypodermic, intravenous, or other medical needles or syringes or other sharps, or (ii) medical household waste containing medical sharps, including, but not limited to, hypodermic, intravenous, or other medical needles or syringes or other sharps, are collected for transport, storage, treatment, transfer, or disposal.

(b) For purposes of this Section, "applicable facility" means any of the following:

(1) A hospital.

(2) An ambulatory surgical treatment center, physician's office, clinic, or other setting where a physician provides care.

(3) A pharmacy employing a registered pharmacist.

(4) The principal place of business of any government official who is authorized under Section 1 of the Hypodermic Syringes and Needles Act (720 ILCS 635/) to possess hypodermic, intravenous, or other medical needles, or hypodermic or intravenous syringes, by reason of his or her official duties.

(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 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. 92-574, eff. 6-26-02.)

(415 ILCS 5/56.7 new)

Sec. 56.7. No permit shall be required under subsection (d)(1) of Section 21 or subsection (g) of Section 56.1 of this Act for a sharps collection station if the station is operated in accordance with all of the following:

(1) The only waste accepted at the sharps collection station is (i) hypodermic, intravenous, or other medical needles or syringes or other sharps, or (ii) medical household waste containing used or unused sharps, including but not limited to, hypodermic, intravenous, or other medical needles or syringes or other sharps.

(2) The waste is stored and transferred in the same manner as required for potentially infectious medical waste under this Act and under Board regulations.

(3) The waste is not treated at the sharps collection station unless it is treated in the same manner as required for potentially infectious medical waste under this Act and under Board regulations.

(4) The waste is not disposed of at the sharps collection station.

(5) The waste is transported in the same manner as required for potentially infectious medical waste under this Act and under Board regulations.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.