Quest Diagnostics’ $5M settlement: California prosecutors found lab waste, patient info in dumpsters

Attorney General Rob Bonta announced Wednesday that the state Department of Justice and 10 district attorneys — including two in the capital region — reached a nearly $5 million settlement with Quest Diagnostics over allegations the national patient testing giant illegally disposed of hazardous medical waste and patient data in trash bins outside of multiple facilities it operates in the state.

“Quest Diagnostics’ illegal disposal of hazardous and medical waste and patient information put families and communities at risk and endangered our environment,” Bonta said in a statement. “Let today’s settlement send a clear message that my office will hold corporations, including medical services providers, accountable.”

The New Jersey-based company conducts blood and other medical tests for everything from cancer screenings to COVID-19 to testing for employment and drug screening. It has more than 600 sites across California, including 30 facilities in the Sacramento four-county region.

The district attorneys in Sacramento and Yolo counties were among numerous top prosecutors in Southern California and the Bay Area to conduct more than 30 inspections at Quest Diagnostics labs and patient service centers, the Attorney General’s Office said.

Investigators said they found hundreds of chemicals, unredacted medical information, human waste and hazardous waste in the company’s dumpsters. This conduct allegedly violates California laws such as the Hazardous Waste Control Law, Medical Waste Management Act and Unfair Competition Law, state prosecutors said.

Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho said in a statement that the financial penalty and other civil penalties would deter Quest Diagnostics from violating the law.

Quest Diagnostics changed its policies once informed of alleged illegal practices, authorities said. Denny Moynihan, a spokesman with Quest Diagnostics, said the company said has made significant investments to implement industry best practices.

Moynihan said the improvements include treating biological waste, securing patient information’s destruction, maximizing recycling efforts and an enhanced waste audit to ensure compliance with laws.

Other counties that had joined the suit were Alameda, Los Angeles, Monterey, Orange, San Mateo, San Bernardino, San Joaquin and Ventura.

Quest Diagnostics is required to pay $3.9 million in civil penalties to prosecuting counties, $700,000 in costs and $300,000 to pay for environmental training. It must also hire a third-party waste auditor, maintain an environmental compliance program and report its progress annually.