DA’s Office and Hospital Reach Agreement on Medical Waste
PARK SLOPE — New York Methodist Hospital on Friday agreed to pay restitution and cleanup expenses after being charged with violating state environmental conservation law regarding the storage of regulated medical waste.
The charge, which was made by the Kings County District Attorney’s Office, stems from an investigation into several incidents of improper disposal and containment of medical waste last year. The hospital cooperated with the DA’s Office after it was informed of the investigation.
In March 2011, according to the District Attorney’s Office, a truck carrying regulated medical waste overturned near the exit ramp of the Lincoln Tunnel in New Jersey, spilling waste onto the road. An investigation conducted by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey traced the materials to New York Methodist Hospital, and the District Attorney’s Office launched an investigation.
Between March and May 2011, investigators from the District Attorney’s Office and several other agencies watched the hospital’s loading dock and witnessed several other violations. In a separate incident in May, workers at a solid waste transfer station in Brooklyn who were not licensed to handle regulated medical waste discovered a bag of it in their facility, and they contacted the District Attorney’s Office.