Charlie Cray

In the following viewpoint, Charlie Cray explains that an organization of health care workers and environmentalists has succeeded in forcing hospitals to reduce medical pollution. Cray reports that under the organization’s pressure, fewer hospitals are incinerating medical waste, which creates toxins harmful to human health. The organization has also convinced numerous hospitals to curtail the use of mercury thermometers and PVC medical devices such as IV bags, which pollute the environment when disposed of. Charlie Cray is associate editor for the Multinational Monitor, a monthly magazine.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to Cray, how was the HCWH able to convince hospitals to stop incinerating medical waste?
2. Why did Jamie Harvie think mercury thermometers were a good issue with which to lead the campaign against medical pollution, as...