Nearly two dozen new lawsuits were filed against Sterigenics this week over its now-shuttered ethylene oxide (EtO) sterilization plant in Willowbrook, Ill., according to a law firm representing some of the plaintiffs. That brings the total of such lawsuits to nearly 75, noted Chicago personal injury lawyer Antonio Romanucci, court-appointed lead counsel from among five firms involved in the […]
ethylene oxide
Report: EtO blood levels higher in Illinois neighbors of Medline sterilization plant
This article has been updated with comments from Medline Industries. People who live about a mile away from a Medline device sterilization plant in Waukegan, Ill. have blood levels of the cancer-causing gas ethylene oxide that are about 50% higher than those who live farther away, according to a report by WebMD and Georgia Health News. Environmental health researchers from the […]
EPA moves closer to stricter regulation of medtech ethylene oxide sterilization
The Environmental Protection Agency yesterday asked the commercial ethylene oxide (EtO) industry, which includes medical device sterilizers, for input on next year’s updated regulation of emissions of the carcinogenic gas. Specifically, the EPA is requesting comment on available control technologies for reducing EtO emissions and on developments in practices, measurement, monitoring, processes and control technologies for the […]
Viant to cease ethylene oxide sterilization at Michigan plant by year’s end
Viant Medical has signed a consent order to stop sterilizing medical devices using ethylene oxide (EtO) at its plant in Grand Rapids, Mich. by Dec. 31, 2020, according to the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE). Viant also agreed to stop using ethylene oxide (EtO) at the plant by Jan. 31, to conduct monthly air […]
FDA moves to reduce ethylene oxide use
This article has been updated with a comment from the trade group AdvaMed. The FDA today announced steps it wants the medtech industry to take to reduce its reliance on ethylene oxide (EtO) as a sterilant. Based on testimony it received at a recent advisory panel meeting on the sterilant gas, which the EPA considers carcinogenic, the […]
Congressional task force to press EPA on ethylene oxide emissions standards
Congressmen from Illinois and Georgia have formed a bipartisan task force to pressure the Environmental Protection Agency to place stricter limits on ethylene oxide (EtO) emissions from medtech sterilization and other industrial uses. Illinois Democrat Rep. Brad Schneider and Georgia Republican Rep. Jody Hice put together the task force in support of a bill Schneider introduced in […]
EPA proposes drastic cuts to EtO emissions nationwide
The EPA has announced plans to greatly reduce industrial emissions of ethylene oxide (EtO), the carcinogenic gas used to sterilize billions of medical devices annually. The agency proposed cutting EtO emissions from industrial facilities by 93% as part of amendments to the Miscellaneous Organic Chemical Manufacturing National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) to reduce hazardous […]
How can medtech overcome its ethylene oxide sterilization crisis?
Until recently, the debate over the widely used sterilant gas ethylene oxide (EtO) has been largely waged on state and local levels in the U.S. But now it’s going public at the federal level. From city council chambers to judges’ chambers, through volleys of press releases and the clamor of citizen picket lines, the stream of information […]
Georgia seeks temporary halt to BD sterilization operation
The state of Georgia has asked a court to temporarily shutter a Becton Dickinson (NYSE:BDX) medtech sterilization plant until it complies with state environmental regulations. The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) filed a motion yesterday with Newton County Superior Court for a temporary restraining order to halt operations at BD’s Covington, Ga. plant, which uses ethylene oxide […]
Georgia to investigate BD medtech sterilization plant
The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) has opened an investigation into Becton Dickinson’s (NYSE:BDX) medical device sterilization plant in Covington, Ga. following an eight-day leak of the sterilant gas ethylene oxide (EO). The EPD notified BD this week that it was dissatisfied with the company’s reporting of the valve leak that released 54 lbs. of ethylene oxide […]
A ‘rolling effect’ on medtech sterilization plants?
The types of regulatory hurdles that contributed to the permanent closure this week of the Sterigenics medtech sterilization plant in Willowbrook, Ill., have created a “rolling effect” on ethylene oxide (EO) plants around the country, according to an industry official. The state of Illinois temporarily shut down the Willowbrook plant in February over emissions of EO, a […]