Public Act 094-0641
 		





HB0523 Enrolled
LRB094 03776 RSP 33785 b






    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.