ASSEMBLY, No. 3635
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
219th LEGISLATURE
INTRODUCED MARCH 16, 2020
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman ERIK PETERSON
District 23 (Hunterdon, Somerset and Warren)
SYNOPSIS
Requires DOH to provide for voluntary registration of trauma scene waste management service providers and establish trauma scene waste management registry.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning trauma scene waste management and supplementing chapter 1E of Title 13 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in this act:
"American Bio Recovery Association (ABRA)" means the international nonprofit association that establishes technical, ethical, and educational guidelines for the biohazard remediation industry.
"ANSI/IICRC S540 Standard for Trauma and Crime Scene Cleanup" means the standard for trauma and crime scene cleanup that has been adopted by the non-profit Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification.
"Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Health.
"Department" means the Department of Health.
"Registry" means the Trauma Scene Waste Management Registry established pursuant to section 3 of this act.
"Trauma scene" means a site that has been soiled by, or contaminated with, regulated medical waste or potentially infectious material, as a result of: acts of bioterrorism; a homicide or suicide; or the death of a human being in which there is advanced decomposition of the body, or in which there is a potential for the spread of infectious disease or a biological agent.
"Trauma scene waste management service provider" means a commercial entity that provides for the clean-up, removal, or remediation of regulated medical waste and potentially infectious materials at a trauma scene in the State.
2. a. Within 120 days after the enactment of this act, the Department of Health, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Protection, shall establish a voluntary registration program for trauma scene waste management service providers. Any registration issued under the program shall be valid for a period of one year, and may be renewed on an annual basis.
b. In order to be registered by the department, under this section, as a trauma scene waste management provider, the owner or principal representative of the provider organization shall hold and maintain certification from the American Bio Recovery Association (ABRA), and the provider organization shall:
(1) pay an initial registration fee of $100 and an annual registration renewal fee of $100;
(2) register with the Department of Environmental Protection as a medical waste generator;
(3) provide a written statement certifying that the provider's staff is familiar with the ANSI/IICRC S540 Standard for Trauma and Crime Scene Cleanup; and
(4) comply with any other requirements established by the department.
c. Applications for registration under this section shall be submitted in a form and manner prescribed by the commissioner.
3. a. The commissioner shall establish and maintain an electronic database, to be known as the Trauma Scene Waste Management Registry, which shall identify and provide contact information for each of the commercial entities that are registered pursuant to this act. Data on the registry shall be searchable by county and by provider name. The department shall make the registry available for public review on the department's Internet website, and shall update the registry on a regular basis in order to ensure that it provides accurate and up-to-date information.
b. The Commissioner of Environmental Protection shall post a hyperlink to the Trauma Scene Waste Management Registry on the Internet website of the Department of Environmental Protection.
4. a. Upon the publication of the Trauma Scene Waste Management Registry pursuant to section 3 of this act, the department shall notify all law enforcement agencies, fire departments, and emergency medical services providers in the State about the availability of the registry.
b. Following the receipt of notice pursuant to subsection a. of this section, each law enforcement agency, fire department, or emergency medical services provider operating in the State, and any paid or unpaid employee thereof, shall be prohibited from providing referrals to, or distributing information about, a trauma scene waste management services provider that is not identified on the registry.
5. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would require the Department of Health, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Protection, to establish a voluntary registration program for trauma scene waste management service providers. Any registration issued under the program will be valid for one year, and may be renewed on an annual basis.
In order to be registered by the department, the owner or principal representative of the provider organization will be required to hold and maintain certification from the American Bio Recovery Association (ABRA), which is the international nonprofit association that establishes technical, ethical, and educational guidelines for the biohazard remediation industry. In addition, the provider organization will be required to: 1) pay an initial registration fee of $100 and an annual registration renewal fee of $100; 2) register with the Department of Environmental Protection as a medical waste generator; 3) provide a written statement certifying that the provider's staff is familiar with the ANSI/IICRC S540 Standard for Trauma and Crime Scene Cleanup; and 4) comply with any other requirements established by the department. Applications for registration are to be submitted in a form and manner prescribed by the commissioner.
The bill would additionally require the Commissioner of Health to establish and maintain an electronic database, to be known as the Trauma Scene Waste Management Registry, which will identify and provide contact information for each of the commercial entities that are registered pursuant to the bill's provisions. Data on the registry is to be searchable by county and by provider name. The department will be required to make the registry available for public review on the department's Internet website, and update the registry on a regular basis in order to ensure that it provides accurate and up-to-date information.
The bill would also require the website of the Department of Environmental Protection to include a hyperlink to the Trauma Scene Waste Management Registry.
Upon the publication of the Trauma Scene Waste Management Registry, the Department of Health will be required to notify all law enforcement agencies, fire departments, and emergency medical services providers in the State about the availability of the registry. Following the receipt of this notice, each law enforcement agency, fire department, or emergency medical services provider, and any paid or unpaid employee thereof, will be prohibited from providing referrals to, or distributing information about, a trauma scene waste management services provider that is not identified on the registry.
While the State has already implemented a comprehensive statutory and regulatory framework that governs the generation, handling, transport, and disposal of regulated medical waste, there is a gap in the State's regulatory system in this regard, in that there are no provisions that regulate the clean-up and remediation of medical waste or infectious materials from biohazardous trauma scenes. By effectively preventing unregistered trauma scene waste management service providers from receiving service referrals, this bill is designed to encourage such providers to voluntarily apply for registration and obtain the non-profit certification and familiarity with accepted clean-up standards that will better ensure the safety of trauma scene clean-up operations undertaken in the State.