Health Care Without Harm

Founded at Commonweal in September, 1996, with initial funding from the Jenifer Altman Foundation, Health Care Without Harm: The Campaign for Environmentally Responsible Health Care, has become a model of a national and international grassroots-based and market-oriented toxics campaign focused on eliminating mercury, dioxin and medical waste incineration from the health care industry. Over the past four years, HCWH has built a broad-based coalition of over 285 member organizations in more than 25 countries.

Under the leadership of Gary Cohen of the Environmental Health Fund, Charlotte Brody of the Center for Health, Environment and Justice, and Jackie Christiansen of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, HCWH has developed a coalition of skilled and committed advocates that include health-affected groups, faith-based groups, health professionals, labor organizations, environmental organizations, indigenous peoples' networks, scientific constituencies, and numerous other organizations.

As a result of HCWH's work,

- hundreds of medical waste incinerators have closed in the past four years in the United States alone, and many more abroad, and the market for building new incinerators in the U.S. has dried up and is under challenge internationally;
- major pharmacy chains in the U.S. including Wall-Mart, K-Mart, Rite Aid, and Albertson's, have agreed to stop selling mercury thermometers at all their outlets;
- over 600 hospitals and clinics nationwide have taken the HCWH pledge
to go mercury-free; the campaign is working with many of these institutions
to implement this pledge;
- Baxter International, the world's largest manufacturer of intravenous systems, agreed to phase out their global line of PVC IV systems over the next several years.

These concrete and measurable outcomes, and many comparable victories internationally in India, the Philippines, Poland, the European Community and elsewhere, have marked HCWH as one of a small number of the grassroots-based and market-focused campaigns that we believe represent the future of global citizen action in a globalized economy.

HCWH has been the principle learning ground for the Jenifer Altman Foundation, the Mitchell Kapor Foundation and the StarFire Fund, which grant collaboratively in environmental health, in developing our methodologies of investing in grass roots-based, market-focused campaign philanthropy. Our work is characterized by collaboration with other interested grantmakers and close consultation with the leadership of the campaigns we support on the most efficacious investment of resources.

BREAST CANCER FUND
$5000
282 Second Street, 2nd Floor
San Francisco, CA 94105

In support of a survey on the medical waste practices of Bay Area hospitals, which provided a baseline understanding of how medical waste is being handled in the Bay Area.

BREAST CANCER FUND
$6820/$10,000
282 Second Street, 2nd Floor
San Francisco, CA 94105

In support of organizing breast cancer advocacy groups across the U.S. to publicize local efforts supporting the Health Care Without Harm campaign.

CHEJ: CENTER FOR HEALTH, ENVIRONMENT AND JUSTICE
$50,000
P. O. Box 6806
Falls Church, VA 2240-6806

In support of the core secretariat of and strategic planning for the Health Care Without Harm campaign.

CHEJ: CENTER FOR HEALTH, ENVIRONMENT AND JUSTICE
$14,840
P. O. Box 6806
Falls Church, VA 2240-6806

In support of food and lodging for grassroots activists attending the 1998 strategic planning meeting of the Health Care Without Harm campaign.

CHEJ: CENTER FOR HEALTH, ENVIRONMENT AND JUSTICE
$7660
P. O. Box 6806
Falls Church, VA 22040-6806

In support of the 1997 Adopt-A-Hospital training held in New York, which provided participants with the tools to approach hospitals in their respective communities and help them take steps to "green" their procurement policies and medical waste practices.

CHEJ: CENTER FOR HEALTH, ENVIRONMENT AND JUSTICE
$7500
P.O. Box 6806
Falls Church, VA 22040- 6806

Toward the education of physicians to serve as spokespeople in the Health Care Without Harm campaign.

CHEJ: CENTER FOR HEALTH, ENVIRONMENT AND JUSTICE
$25,000
P.O. Box 6806
Falls Church, VA 22040-6806

In support of Health Care Without Harm's media campaign related to the 100th anniversary meeting of the American Hospital Association in 1998.

THE CITIZENS' ENVIRONMENTAL COALITION
$10,000
33 Central Avenue
Albany, NY 12210

In support of organizing key constituencies in the state of New York to move the Health Care Without Harm campaign forward.

CITIZENS FOR A BETTER ENVIRONMENT
$2500
407 South Dearborn, Suite 1775
Chicago, IL 60605

Toward the development of a statewide hospital waste initiative in Illinois.

CONSUMER'S UNION
$10,000
West Coast Regional Office
Consumers Union of U.S., Inc.
1535 Mission Street
San Francisco, CA 94103

In support of the development of potential collaboration between the Community Health Assets Project, which seeks to preserve charitable assets as non-profit health care institutions converted to for-profit companies, and the Health Care Without Harm campaign.

EARTH JUSTICE LEGAL DEFENSE FUND
$5000
180 Montgomery Street, Suite 1400
San Francisco, CA 94104-4209

In support of petitioning a review of the EPA's recent ruling on medical waste incinerators, which fell short of the Clean Air Act requirements.

ECOLOGY CENTER OF ANN ARBOR
$2500
117 North Division
Ann Arbor, MI 48104

To encourage hospitals and health care institutions to adopt green purchasing policies, reduce waste, use non-burn technologies, and broaden constituencies involved in medical waste campaigns in the Great Lakes area.

ENDOMETRIOSIS ASSOCIATION
$5000
8585 North 76th Place
Milwaukee, WI 53223

In support of a publication on the links between endometriosis and dioxin to be distributed at medical forums.

INSTITUTE FOR AGRICULTURE AND TRADE POLICY
$10,000/ 15,000
2105 First Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55404

In support of food, lodging and travel assistance for grassroots activists attending the 1997 planning meeting of Health Care Without Harm campaign.

INSTITUTE FOR AGRICULTURE AND TRADE POLICY
$10,000
2105 First Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55404

In support of core staffing for the Health Care Without Harm campaign.

MINNESOTA CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCACY
$5000
26 East Exchange Street, Suite 206
Saint Paul, MN 55101-2264

In support of an initiative which helped health care facilities make the transition from the use of products and materials made with PVC plastic to those made with safer alternatives.

MOTHERS AND OTHERS FOR A LIVABLE PLANET
$10,000
40 West 20th Street, 9th Floor
New York, NY 10011

In support of a Medical Waste Public Education Campaign, which provided important information on the environmental dangers and personal risks associated with the production, use and incineration of medical devices containing mercury and PVC plastic.

MULTINATIONALS RESOURCE CENTER
$10,000
Essential Information, Inc.
P. O. Box 19405
Washington DC 20036

Toward efforts to identify the transfer of medical incinerator operations to less developed countries and to provide technical and organizing support to local groups in these countries resisting the introduction of these obsolete and dangerous technologies.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF PHYSICIANS FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
$10,000
6410 Rockledge Drive, Suite 412
Bethesda, MD 20817-1809

In support of a conference which brought together executives of health care associations, environmental groups and Federal regulatory representatives to discuss how hospitals can become more environmentally friendly.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF PHYSICIANS FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
$10,000
6410 Rockledge Drive, Suite 412
Bethesda, MD 20817-1809

In support of a 1998 leadership conference, "Understanding and Communicating the Connections Between Environmental Health and Human Health," held in Washington, DC.

THE NEWTON TELEVISION FOUNDATION
$5000
43 Myrtle Street
Norfolk, MA 02056

In support of the airing of Judith Helfand's video, "A Healthy Baby Girl," a portrait of her experience as a DES baby.

NIGHTINGALE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT
$10,000
5 Ridge Road
Essex Junction, VT 05452

In support of an initiative that encouraged nurses affiliated with the American Nurses Association across the country to lead Adopt-A-Hospital trainings.

PESTICIDE ACTION NETWORK NORTH AMERICA
$750
49 Powell Street, Suite 500
San Francisco, CA 94102

In support of the translation of the Health Care Without Harm handbook from English to Spanish, to be used at international discussions on eliminating persistent organic pollutants.

PHYSICIANS FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
$7500
1101 14th Street, NW, Suite 700
Washington, DC 20005

In support of the Medical Student Organizing Initiative, designed to mobilize medical students in local campaigns across the country to reform medical waste practices.

SIERRA CLUB LEGAL DEFENSE FUND
$5000
180 Montgomery Street, Suite 1400
San Francisco, CA 94104-4209

Toward travel expenses for participants to attend a conference as part of the Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals Law Project, which focused on the toxic chemical, DEHP, used in many PVC plastic products in hospitals.

SRISHTI
$1500
1001, Antariksha Bhawan
22, Katurba Gandhi Marg
New Delhi 110001 India

Toward travel costs to bring the leader of SRISHTI's Medical Waste Incineration Campaign in Delhi, India to the U.S. to meet with the leaders of Health Care Without Harm. Multinationals Resource Center, through Essential Information, Inc., served as fiscal sponsor.

WASHINGTON TOXICS COALITION
$7500
4649 Sunnyside Avenue North, Suite 540 East
Seattle, WA 98103

In support of activities related to furthering the Health Care Without Harm Campaign in Washington State and the Pacific Northwest.

WHOLE EARTH REVIEW
$5000
Point Foundation
1408 Mission Avenue
San Rafael, CA 94901

In support of production of a special section, "Health Without Harm," in an issue of Whole Earth Review.