80 FR 68491 - Management Standards for Hazardous Waste Pharmaceuticals

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 214 (November 5, 2015)

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or the Agency) is announcing an extension to the comment period for the proposed rule on the management and disposal of hazardous waste pharmaceuticals published in the Federal Register on September 25, 2015. EPA is proposing new hazardous waste pharmaceutical regulations under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) to improve compliance and thereby enhance protection of human health and the environment. Specifically, EPA proposed to revise the regulations to improve the management and disposal of hazardous waste pharmaceuticals and tailor them to address the specific issues that hospitals, pharmacies and other healthcare-related facilities face. The revisions are also intended to clarify the regulation of the reverse distribution mechanism used by healthcare facilities for the management of unused and/or expired pharmaceuticals. The comment period is being extended to December 24, 2015.

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 214 (Thursday, November 5, 2015)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 68491]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-28100]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Parts 261, 262, 266, 268, and 273

[EPA-HQ-RCRA-2007-0932; FRL-9936-49-OSWER]
RIN 2050-AG39


Management Standards for Hazardous Waste Pharmaceuticals

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule; extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or the Agency) is 
announcing an extension to the comment period for the proposed rule on 
the management and disposal of hazardous waste pharmaceuticals 
published in the Federal Register on September 25, 2015. EPA is 
proposing new hazardous waste pharmaceutical regulations under the 
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) to improve compliance and 
thereby enhance protection of human health and the environment. 
Specifically, EPA proposed to revise the regulations to improve the 
management and disposal of hazardous waste pharmaceuticals and tailor 
them to address the specific issues that hospitals, pharmacies and 
other healthcare-related facilities face. The revisions are also 
intended to clarify the regulation of the reverse distribution 
mechanism used by healthcare facilities for the management of unused 
and/or expired pharmaceuticals. The comment period is being extended to 
December 24, 2015.

DATES: Comments on the proposed rule published September 25, 2015 (80 
FR 58014) must be received on or before December 24, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
RCRA-2007-0932, to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or withdrawn. The 
EPA may publish any comment received to its public docket. Do not 
submit electronically any information you consider to be Confidential 
Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is 
restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must 
be accompanied by a written comment. The written comment is considered 
the official comment and should include discussion of all points you 
wish to make. The EPA will generally not consider comments or comment 
contents located outside of the primary submission (i.e. on the web, 
cloud, or other file sharing system). For additional submission 
methods, the full EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or 
multimedia submissions, and general guidance on making effective 
comments, please visit http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For more detailed information on 
specific aspects of this rulemaking, contact Kristin Fitzgerald, Office 
of Resource Conservation and Recovery (5304P), Environmental Protection 
Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone 
number: 703-308-8286; email address: [email protected] or 
Joshua Smeraldi, Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery (5304P), 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., 
Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 703-308-0441; email address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document extends the public comment 
period established in the Federal Register for 30 days. In that Federal 
Register notice, EPA proposed new regulations for the management of 
hazardous waste pharmaceuticals. The purpose of this proposed 
regulation is to improve the management and disposal of hazardous waste 
pharmaceuticals and tailor them to address the specific issues that 
hospitals, pharmacies and other healthcare-related facilities face. The 
revisions are also intended to clarify the regulation of the reverse 
distribution mechanism used by healthcare facilities for the management 
of unused and/or expired pharmaceuticals. Several requests were 
received from potential commenters to extend the comment period to 
allow greater time to comment. EPA is hereby extending the comment 
period, which was set to end on November 24, 2015, to December 24, 
2015. Please note that late comments on this rule making may not be 
considered.
    To submit comments or access the docket, please follow the detailed 
instructions as provided under ADDRESSES. If you have questions, 
consult the individuals listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

    Dated: October 22, 2015.
Barnes Johnson,
Director, Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery, Office of Solid 
Waste and Emergency Response.
[FR Doc. 2015-28100 Filed 11-4-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P