OmniPod adds a disposal program
Thursday, July 9, 2009 at 3:49PM
The makers of the OmniPod just removed one of my only complaints about their product by announcing a pod recycling program. I am a proud recycler, the guy that reaches into the trash to pull out a improperly discarded soda can...
One of the great aspects of using the OmniPod is that it’s disposable, every three days the pod comes off of Arden and a new one goes on. The problem that creates is that the pod has a needle, insulin, circuit boards, plastic and batteries in it when you drop it in the trash. There is no correct place to dispose of something with all of those various components (trust me that there isn’t because I spent a day on the phone calling every municipal entity I could think of and they all agreed that it had to be dropped into the garbage because it didn’t fit into any recycling category). Until now...
From OmniPod
You take care of your health with OmniPod. Take care of the planet with OmniPod’s Eco-Pod Program. The first industry program for the environmentally safe disposal of insulin pump components, it is a natural extension of OmniPod’s mission: to make diabetes a smaller part of life. Our goal is to enable our customers to dispose of those Pods in an environmentally sound way, reducing landfill and taking hazardous waste right out of the waste stream. Working together we can succeed.
OmniPod’s Eco-Pod Program is quick, easy and effective. Just return your used Pods (we supply the shipping materials, you supply the postage) and we take care of processing.
http://www.myomnipod.com/customer-care/pod-disposal-program/
I’d like to thank the people at OmniPod for putting this program in place as I imagine that it is at some expense to them... But I also want to thank anyone who participates in the program because I know that while Omni is running the program at no cost to the user there is still a $8 shipping charge that the user will have to absorb quarterly. Additionally, the program will require you to store the discarded pods for three months, make a trip to the post office and of course pay the freight. The last thing anyone dealing with type I needs is another thing to be responsible for but this thing seems to be worth the effort IMO. Arden just signed up and we hope you will too!
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Insulin Pump, OmniPod, type I in OmniPod Blog
Reader Comments (2)
The last I heard, this program was not a recycling one but a disposal one. Has this changed? Are the components truly being recycled?
Lee Anne,
It seems that the program may have morphed a bit since it's inception. I was charged an $8 fee last month for the shipping envelope to return our used pods. I feel like when the program was initially introduced the word 'recycle" was attached to the endeavor. However, I just re-checked Insulet's website and it seems that some components are recycled while others are "pulverized" (see below). Thank you so much for pointing this out and for being part of the conversation!
Best,
Scott
The following is from myomnipod.com -
http://www.myomnipod.com/customer-care/pod-disposal-program/faqs/
"Every three months program participants return their used insulin Pods in a convenient pre-paid, pre-addressed shipping envelope provided by the program. Following procedures for medical waste, the Pods are disassembled and metals are removed and recycled. The remaining components are then pulverized, greatly reducing the volume of materials that are land-filled."