REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
April 7, 2026
FROM
ANDREW GOLDFRACH, ARMC Chief Executive Officer, Arrowhead Regional Medical Center
SUBJECT
Title
Appropriation Adjustments to Master Service Agreements with Stericycle, Inc. for Provision of Waste Disposal Services
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve an increase in funding allocation to the following Master Service Agreements with Stericycle, Inc. in the aggregate amount of $500,000, for the provisions of waste disposal services, increasing the total contract amount from a not-to-exceed aggregate amount of $3,500,000 to a not-to-exceed aggregate amount of $4,000,000, with no change to the term of the contracts as specified:
1. Agreement No. 21-412 relating to pharmaceutical waste disposal, with a term of June 8, 2021 through June 7, 2026.
2. Agreement No. 21-413 relating to regulated waste disposal, with a term of June 8, 2021 through June 7, 2026.
3. Agreement No. 21-414 relating to hazardous waste disposal, with a term of June 8, 2021 through June 7, 2026.
4. Agreement No. 21-741 relating to controlled substance disposal, with a term of October 5, 2021 through June 7, 2026.
(Presenter: Andrew Goldfrach, ARMC Chief Executive Officer, 580-6150)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The aggregate cost of $4,000,000 is funded by State Medi-Cal, Federal Medicare, private insurances, and other departmental revenue. Funding sources may change in the future pending any legislative activity related to the repeal and/or replacement of the Affordable Care Act. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the Arrowhead Regional Medical Center (ARMC) 2025-26 budget.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The increase in funding allocation will provide ARMC the ability to continue to utilize Stericycle, Inc. (Stericycle) to dispose of regulated medical, pharmaceutical, hazardous, and controlled substance waste in a safe and efficient manner. As a Level I Trauma Center, ARMC has experienced an increase in patient volume, leading to an increase in the frequency of Stericycle services and waste disposal services, which requires the addition of funding to pay for these services.
Regulated medical waste disposal is the removal of waste that may be contaminated by blood, body fluids, or other infectious materials. Pharmaceutical waste disposal entails the disposal of controlled substances in containers that are pre-loaded with deactivating agent deterrents, which permanently alter the substance’s chemical condition rendering the substance unavailable and unusable; including pills, patches, tablets and IV solutions. The deactivating agent also works as a precautionary measure deterring the improbable occurrence of something attempting to ingest the liquid. Hazardous waste disposal services, provided by Stericycle, will ensure that waste that is ignitable, reactive corrosive, and toxic will be safely collected and removed.
On June 8, 2021 (Item No. 15), as the result of a competitive procurement, the Board of Supervisors (Board) approved Master Service Agreements No’s. 21-412, 21-413, and 21-414 for pharmaceutical waste disposal, regulated waste disposal, and hazardous waste disposal, respectively, with Stericycle in a total aggregate amount not to exceed $2,500,000, for the term of June 8, 2021 through June 7, 2026. However, the agreement terms did not include a dollar limit on the services; instead, the agreements listed the costs based on units. The aggregate not-to-exceed amount of $2,500,000 was an internal County limit specified on the item and coversheet. As such, this item is now being presented to the Board to authorize an increase in the funding allocation to Agreement No’s. 21-415, 21-413, and 21-414 to enable ARMC to properly and safely dispose of hospital and clinic waste in accordance with all applicable laws.
On October 5, 2021 (Item No. 14), the Board approved Master Service Agreement No. 21-741 with Stericycle for the provisions of controlled substance disposal, increasing the total aggregate not-to-exceed amount by $250,000, from $2,500,000 to $2,750,000 for the Master services Agreements with Stericycle, for a contract period of October 5, 2021 through June 7, 2026.
On April, 29, 2025 (Item. No. 11) the Board approved an increase in funding allocation to the Agreement Nos. 21-412, 21-413, and 21-414 in the aggregate amount of $400,000, for the provisions of waste disposal services, increasing the total contract amount from a not-to-exceed aggregate amount of $2,500,000 to a not-to-exceed aggregate amount of $2,900,000, with no change to the contract term of June 8, 2021 through June 7, 2026. The Board item inadvertently omitted Agreement No. 21-741.
On October 21, 2025 (Item No. 16), the Board approved an increase in funding allocation to Agreement Nos. 21-412, 21-413, 21-414, and 21-741 in the aggregate amount of $600,000, for the provisions of waste disposal services, increasing the total contract amount from a not-to-exceed aggregate amount of $2,900,000 to a not-to-exceed aggregate amount of $3,500,000, with no change to the term of the agreements.
ARMC recommends approval of the increases in funding allocation as it will enable the hospital to provide for the safety, health and social services needs of County residents.
PROCUREMENT
Not applicable.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Charles Phan, Supervising Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on March 3, 2026; Purchasing (Veronica Pedace, Buyer III, 387-2464) on March 4, 2026; ARMC Finance (Chen Wu, Finance and Budget Officer, 580-3165) on March 16, 2026; and County Finance and Administration (Jenny Yang, Administrative Analyst, 387-4884) on March 17, 2026.