Certified Healthcare Safety Professional (CHSP) Practice Exam

Which of the following is true about the Medical Waste Tracking Act?

1. It is currently in effect.

2. It was implemented to regulate radioactive waste.

3. It expired in 1991.

4. It addresses only sharps disposal.

The correct answer is: It expired in 1991.

The Medical Waste Tracking Act was indeed enacted in 1988 and was designed to establish standards for the management and disposal of medical waste. However, it has not been in effect since it expired in 1991. The Act originally aimed to temporarily address the issue of medical waste management by requiring tracking of certain types of medical waste from the point of generation to its disposal, following incidents of improperly discarded medical waste that received widespread media attention. The statement that the Act is currently in effect is inaccurate, as it has not been reauthorized or retained beyond its original expiration. Although there are ongoing regulations and guidelines for medical waste management, they are now primarily governed by other laws and regulations rather than this specific Act. While the Act aimed to address various aspects of medical waste management, it was not exclusively focused on radioactive waste; thus, that statement is misleading. Additionally, the Act did not focus solely on sharps disposal, as it encompassed a broader range of medical waste types, including but not limited to infectious waste and pathological waste. Therefore, stating that it expired in 1991 accurately reflects the status of the Medical Waste Tracking Act.