DEP: Hospitals violated waste rules

Associated Press

PITTSBURGH

The state Department of Environmental Protection says two Pittsburgh-based hospital networks face likely penalties for illegally disposing of medical waste.

DEP spokesman John Poister says fines are likely against the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and the Allegheny Health Network, once regulators are “assured that there are procedures in effect that will prevent medical waste from getting to landfills in the future.”

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports the DEP sent violation notices to both hospital groups Feb. 14 after medical waste from both systems wound up in a Waste Management landfill in Monroeville several times since December.

Officials with UPMC and Allegheny Health stopped short of acknowledging wrongdoing, but both say they’ve reminded or retrained their staff about proper disposal of medical waste.

It wasn’t immediately clear how large the fines could be.