Dumping Dirty Syringes and Bodily Fluids into Dumpsters Costs Kaiser Permanente $49 Million

BRAIN SALAD SURGERY? –

Sept. 8, 2023 – “Nurses, physicians and patients could inadvertently touch blood or bodily fluids containing dangerous pathogens. Custodians and sanitation workers could be stuck by a used needle. An aerosol can that wasn’t fully empty could explode and start a fire in a trash can, or in the back of a garbage truck making its way through neighborhood streets.”

Though Bonta said the waste included body parts, Kaiser Permanente said in a statement that it was not “aware of any body parts being found at any time during this investigation.” The health care provider learned of improper disposals about six years ago and took immediate action, according to the statement.

“We immediately completed an extensive auditing effort of the waste stream at our facilities and established mandatory and ongoing training to address the findings,” the statement said. “We take this matter extremely seriously and have taken full responsibility to acknowledge and, in cooperation with the California Attorney General and county district attorneys, correct our performance regarding landfill-bound trash where it may have fallen short of our standards.”