Top Hospital Supply Purchasers To Label DEHP & PVC

Four top group purchasing organizations (GPOs) that buy supplies for more than 70% of U.S. health care facilities announced environmental commitments at the CleanMed conference, a conference on environmentally preferable products for the health care industry.

Premier, Inc., Novation, Broadlane and Consorta, Inc. which together represent about $30 billion in medical purchasing power — announced initiatives designed to reduce purchasing medical products that contain mercury, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic, and the chemical plasticizer DEHP.

Novation will label DEHP-containing and PVC medical products in its catalogues so customers can seek more environmentally preferable alternatives.

Consorta will ask shareholders for permission to label DEHP-containing and PVC products in catalogues, and to take mercury-containing medical devices off contract.

Premier will take mercury-containing medical devices off contract. The company has developed a comprehensive list of pharmaceutical products that contain mercury to help hospitals identify them, and thus manage or dispose of them appropriately.

Broadlane labels products that are free from chlorine, DEHP, latex, mercury and PVC in its on-line catalogue and contract implementation packages.

Also at CleanMed 2002:
Kaiser Permanente, the nations largest health care non-profit, discussed its green building initiative, which includes purchasing agreements for sustainable construction materials to be used in millions of square feet in new construction.

The American Society of Healthcare Engineering (ASHE) presented its Green Healthcare Construction Guidance Statement, to be used in conjunction with ASHEs new Sustainable Design Awards Program.

Shaw Carpets, a leading carpet manufacturer, announced it will market a new toxic-free carpet that will be leased, rather than sold, to users.

Catholic Health East announced they are signing a new contract that provides for destruction of pathological waste without incineration.

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Health Care Without Harm is an international coalition of more than 380 groups in 43 countries working to reduce the environmental impact of health care:
www.noharm.org
www.cleanmed.org