B Braun joins move to abandon PVC:
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
B Braun Medical, a wholly owned subsidiary of German company B Braun Melsungen, claims to be the only US manufacturer to offer a full line of basic IV solutions in non-PVC/non-DEHP plastic containers. There is increasing pressure in the industry to find replacements for products using PVC and DEHP (di-ethylhexyl phthalates) because of health and environmental concerns. The company says that, by switching to IV solutions in non-PVC bags, an average 200-bed hospital could reduce its annual waste disposal of IV containers by about 30,000 lbs. Both Universal Health Services and Tenet Corporation recently announced their aim of replacing PVC medical products with cost-effective alternatives.