{"operation":"document","citation":"07-0094","title":"MTS Medical Waste Management — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"2007-07-10","effective_on":null,"summary":"07-0094 response to MTS Medical Waste Management concerning 173.134, 173.197.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-07-0094.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-07-0094.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-07-0094","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/2007/070094.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\nU.S. Department\nof Transportation\nWashington, DC 20590\n1200 New Jersey Ave., S.B\nPipeline and Hazardou:\nAdministration\nMaterials Safet\nJUL 1 0 2007\nGeneral Manager and Director\nMr. Edward Petrullo\nReference No. 07-0094\nMTS Medical Waste Management\n333 North Seventh Avenue\nPhoenix, AZ 85007\nDear Mr. Petrullo:\nThis responds to your May 11, 2007 e-mail and May 31, 2007 telephone conversation with\nMs. Eileen Edmonson of my staff concerning requirements in the Hazardous Materials\nRegulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) applicable to the transportation of regulated\nmedical waste (RMW). Specifically, you ask for a clarification of our letter to Ms. Selin\nHoboy, Stericycle, Inc. (Reference No. 07-0057; March 19, 2007) concerning the dedicated\nvehicle exceptions in § 173.134(c)(2) of the HMR.\nThe exception in § 173.134(c)(2) permits Category B waste cultures and stocks to be\ntransported as regulated medical waste when packaged in a rigid non-bulk packaging\ncarrier in a vehicle used exclusively to transport RMW. An exclusive-use vehicle is one used\nconforming to certain general packaging requirements and transported by a private or contract\nfor the transportation of a single commodity or class of commodities. Transportation in an\nother types of materials, including non-medical waste materials.\nexclusive-use vehicle in accordance with the exception prevents inadvertent contamination of\nIn our March 19, 2007 letter to Stericycle, Inc., on this subject, we addressed a question\nconcerning the transportation of other types of materials on the same vehicle as Category B\nwaste cultures and stocks: (1) plant and animal waste regulated by the Animal and Plant\nHealth Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; (2) waste pharmaceutical\nmaterials; (3) laboratory and recyclable wastes, such as fixer/developer, amalgam, lead foil,\nand disinfectant materials; (4) infectious substances, including Category A infectious\nsubstances, that have been treated to eliminate or neutralize pathogens; (5) forensic materials\nbeing transported for final destruction; (6) rejected or recalled health care products; and (7)\nlocuments intended for destruction in accordance with HIPAA requirements. While no\nonsidered regulated medical waste, as that term is defined in the HMR, all of the liste\nmaterials are considered medical waste as that term is usually defined and, according to the\ninformation provided by Stericycle, are transported to facilities designated by local authorities\nand designed for the disposal of medical waste. Moreover, under § 173.134(c)(2), medical or\nclinical equipment and laboratory products may be transported on the same vehicle as the\nwaste cultures and stocks covered by the exception, provided they are properly packaged anc\nsecured against exposure or contamination. The term \"laboratory products\" is not defined i\nhe HMR. However, the materials described earlier in this paragraph are generated fron\n173.134 (c)\n173.197\n070094\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\n2\nlaboratories and health care facilities and, thus, may be considered laboratory products for the\npurposes of the exception. For these reasons, we determined that the types of medical waste\ndescribed in our March 19 letter may be transported on the same vehicle as waste cultures and\nstocks in accordance with the exception in § 173.134(c)(2).\nYou ask whether soiled linen and laundry may also be transported on the same vehicle as\nSoiled linen and laundry are not medical waste and are not transported for disposal at a\nwaste cultures and stocks under the exception provided in § 173.134(c). The answer is no.\nmedical waste facility; further, soiled linen and laundry are not laboratory products as that\nterm is used and understood for purposes of the HMR.\nYour email refers to the transportation of soiled healthcare linen on the same vehicle as\nReMIN. Vino in this read shat the ke the in 1 7% not require is ply no of most.\nRMW to be transported on vehicles used exclusively for such transportation. For other than\ntransported on the same vehicle as RMW. Thus, you may transport soiled healthcare linen,\nwaste cultures and stocks, there are no restrictions on the types of materials that may be\nclean linen, hospital supplies, or other materials on the same vehicle as RMW, provided the\nshipment does not contain waste cultures and stocks. For purposes of the HMR, \"culture\"\nmeans an infectious substance containing a pathogen that is intentionally propagated. The\nterm does not include human or animal material collected directly from humans or animals\nand transported for research, diagnosis, investigational activities, or disease treatment or\nprevention, such as excreta, secreta, blood and its components, tissue and tissue swabs, body\nparts, and specimens in transport media (e.g., transwabs, culture media, and blood culture\nbottles). (See § 173.134(a)(3) and (a) (4).)\nCare should be taken, however, when transporting materials on the same vehicle as RMW.\nThe surfaces of packages containing non-contaminated items may become contaminated by\ndirect or indirect contact (e.g., transfer or aerosolization) with pathogenic materials emitted\nfrom or on the surface of RMW packages, or their transport containers or transport vehicles.\nwhen they come in contact with hands or tools used to open them. We recommend when such\nAs a result, the clean items within the packages may inadvertently become contaminated\ntransportation occurs that shippers and carriers take steps to prevent the contamination of the\nouter surface of these packages.\nI hope this satisfies your request.\nSincerely,\nSusan Gorsky\nDure Dy\nRegulations Officer\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Standards\n2\n\n<<<PAGE 3>>>\n\nEdmonson\n5173.197-5173.134\nRegulated Medical Waste\nEdmonson, Eileen <PHMSA>\n07-0094\nFrom:\nhealthcare@milumtextileservices.com\nSent:\nFriday, May 11, 20072:09 PM\nTo:\nEdmonson, Eileen <PHMSA>\nSubject: Follow-Up On RMW Transport Interpretations\nHello Eileen,\nIt was very nice seeing you again in Atlanta. Been many years it seems from the time in San Diego.\nHere below I am copying the e-mail I just sent to William Stevens, Senior Hazardous Materials\nfor a Permit or Exclusion? It seems to me that in the U.S. there are relatively few \"Destination/or\nDesignated Facilities\" than receive, store, and process everything on a truck carrying RMW. Case in\npoint is that even if just RMW and no linen or HIPPA documents, the incinerables are going to go to\nanother facility and maybe that facility is in a different state. Please read my letter below, and then tell\nme what we should do. Thank you very much........\nI would like to correspond with you so that I may work through some of the issues discovered while you\nHello Mr. Stevens,\nInitially, I would like you to summarize for me the \"designated vehicle\" issue we discussed with the CFR\nand I discussed RMW transport in length thursday after the Medical Waste conference in Atlanta.\nsites, so that I may look them up and re-familiarize myself with them.\nYou will remember that we discussed transporting RMW with healthcare linen. We have two plants\nwithin 15 miles of one another and so the unloading of the RMW first and then traveling to the laundry\nplant to unload the soiled healthcare linen is the most efficient for our small operation. I understand\nfixer/developer, HIPPA docs, and healthcare linen may be transported together with RMW. You made\nthat there is an interpretation recently that Stericycle has in writing saying that some materials like\nconsensus and through the last 10 years or so, we have had opinions from the State authorities and\nthe point that you would write a violation for such activity, I believe. We would of course like to have a\nsome at the D.O.T. that stated that these materials we deal with are very similiar in waste\ncharacteristics/soil, and with proper packaging and segregation that they are homogeneous for\ntransport.\nI appreciate your taking the time to assist us with this. Two questions before I close:\nwith the W.H.O. Has there?\n1) I wonder also if there has the been a change in the regs or interpretations due to the re-alignment\n2) Can RMW be manifested on a \"Bill of Lading\" using the words \"Non-hazardous Waste\"?\nI look forward to the CFR reference locations for our education and your opinion concerning these\nareas of concern.\nThanks\nEdward Petrullo, General Manager & Director\nMTS MEDICAL WASTE MANAGEMENT, a division of Milum Textile Services\n5/14/2007\n\n<<<PAGE 4>>>\n\nPage 2 of 2\nemail: healthcare@milumtextileservices.com\nwebsite: www.milumtextileservices.com\nefax: 1-866-754-6583; fax: 602-253-3819\n888 or 602-253-5173; cell 602-620-3004\n5/14/2007","truncated":false,"body_characters":8638}