From the category archives:

Bed Bug Task Force

3 months

by Renee Corea on June 18, 2009

Today is June 18, three months exactly since the Mayor signed the bed bug advisory board bill. (At least one generation.)

There have been no appointments.

At this point I’m no longer wondering at the delay but rather well into the strange realization that perhaps there will be no appointments.

New York vs Bed Bugs was created with a singular purpose. We focused on appealing to the city government. What extraordinary and desperate inexperience.

This is the bottom line: the City of New York does not currently have a bed bug control strategy and appears to have no intention of formulating one. In some sloppy corners of the media, New York City is said to already have a bed bug task force, never mind the distinction between a task force and an advisory board. Maybe that is all that was intended, to create the impression that something is being done, that attention is being paid. And then let it drop.

This week I have been on the verge of asking you to write letters. Again! What a horrible waste.

And yet, would you?

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NYC’s bed bug advisory board: no appointments

by Renee Corea on April 10, 2009

in Bed Bug Task Force

Yes, we know.

We’re actually back where we started, with no one returning our calls.

The bill was signed by the Mayor on March 18. It’s been four weeks.

I can tell you what we’ve concluded after a year of doing this: very few people actually care about bed bugs.

A bed bug can complete its life cycle in 4 weeks given the right temperature. So, probably not quite yet. Unless you keep your apartment really warm.

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NYC’s Bed Bug Advisory Board: what is it and what is it for?

by Renee Corea on March 23, 2009

in Bed Bug Task Force,Featured

The original language in the bill said “bed bug task force.” This change has not been unnoticed in the community.

Like we said, it doesn’t matter, we can still do this.

The purpose of the board is to study the health concerns of bed bugs and make specific recommendations to the mayor and to the city council, within nine months, on the “prevention and treatment of bed bug infestations throughout the city.”

Ten members

An entomologist – appointed by the Mayor
A pest management professional – appointed by the Mayor
A community health professional – appointed by the Speaker
A fourth appointee – appointed by the Mayor
A fifth appointee – appointed by the Speaker
Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
Department of Consumer Affairs
Department of Sanitation
Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications
Department of Housing Preservation and Development

Here it is worth noting in light of certain knee-jerk commentary in the media that the advisory board serves without compensation.

The advisory board could have included other NYC agencies, but it does not. It is best not to dwell on what isn’t.

And better to focus on what is actually in front of us:

The report

The board will write a report for the mayor and the city council to include specific recommendations on the following:

“Prevention and treatment of bed bug infestations in private dwellings”
“Prevention and treatment of bed bug infestations in public accommodations and institutions, including, but not limited to, schools, hotels, hospitals, nursing homes, jails and residential shelters”
“Tracking and reporting of bed bug infestations”
“Disposal of bed bug infested items”
“Bed bug training and/or education for urban pest management professionals”
“Bed bug training and/or education for city workers”
“The development and most effective distribution of public education and resource materials on bed bug prevention and treatment, including, but not limited to, information on the rights and responsibilities of landlords, tenants and homeowners”

This is what we want to see happen

The board should listen and consult. Listen to the affected public and consult, everyone. This means that they should not just listen to those who will be savvy enough to arrange meetings with them, but they should listen to those who have no access to such communication channels. What we are talking about here is the people who are affected by bed bugs. It’s one thing to look at a graph that tells you that NYCHA is underserving bed bug complaints, and quite another to hear the stories of people who are calling the NYCHA maintenance line, as they should, getting tickets for their bed bug complaints, getting told that they will receive pest control visits, and getting no such visits. If you do one but not the other, you are operating on insufficient and inadequate information. Look at everything, understand everything.
The board should make every effort to move quickly. However, we are not so worried about the 9-month span contemplated by the bill because we are hoping that there will be some immediate changes and other changes during the process. We are really banking on this, so to speak.
For example, we want to see the following steps taken by the relevant agencies as soon as possible (under the premise that it requires no further study to take these steps, they are so self-evidently necessary):

make 311 calls about bed bugs available in Local Law 47 reports; if you can itemize unleashed dog complaints, you can list bed bug complaints, it’s as simple as that
put up an educational website (at the Health Department perhaps, wherever), build it as you go, do not wait nine months for it to be recommended
clarify the law for the vast numbers of people who are still looking for this information (it looks pretty clear to us, but we’re not lawyers), fighting with their landlords, clogging housing court—we will not reduce these cases completely, but we can make a dent by simply disseminating the right information. Are there any exceptions? What are they? Who is affected? This ought to be simple. If it is complex, it can still be communicated simply. Dissemination of this information is an urgent need and there can be no convincing argument against it.

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NYC’s Bed Bug Advisory Board: the Mayor’s press release

by Renee Corea on March 19, 2009

in Bed Bug Task Force,Legislation

The Mayor signed Int. 57-A yesterday. This is the press release:

MAYOR BLOOMBERG SIGNS LEGISLATION TO ESTABLISH A BED BUG ADVISORY BOARD

Remarks by Mayor Bloomberg at a Public Hearing on Local Laws

“The third bill before me is Introductory Number 57-A, sponsored by Speaker Quinn and Council Members Brewer, Foster, Gentile, Gerson, Gonzalez, James, Mark-Viverito, Martinez, Mendez, Nelson, Palma, Sanders, Weprin, White, Koppell, Liu, Recchia, Sears, Vallone, Garodnick, Jackson, Avella, Arroyo, Dickens, Mealy, Lappin, Stewart, Rivera, and Gennaro. Introductory Number 57-A establishes a Bed Bug Advisory Board.

“Bed bugs are small insects that often hide in cracks in furniture, floors, or walls and are usually active at night. The physical impact to those living with bed bugs may start with painless bites which can later turn in to large, itchy welts. These bites are a great nuisance and can have a negative impact on the quality of life of New Yorkers.

“Bed bugs have resurfaced in New York City in recent years and we are not alone. Urban centers throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe are experiencing a resurgence in bed bugs. In response, we have instituted a multi-pronged approach to address the issue which includes: prevention through public education, creation of guidelines and protocols for residents, health care providers, businesses, and pest management professionals, and a systematic response to bed bug complaints.

“Despite all of our efforts, there is currently inadequate data to understand the full extent of the bed bug problem in the City. The creation of the Bed Bug Advisory Board, comprised of experts in the pest management, entomology, and public health fields and representatives from the Departments of Health and Mental Hygiene, Consumer Affairs, Sanitation, Information Technology and Telecommunications, and Housing Preservation and Development will examine the bed bug problem in further detail, systematically evaluate, study, identify and develop appropriate strategies to control and eradicate the bed bug problem in the City. The Advisory Board will report back their findings to the Mayor and the Speaker within nine months of their appointment.

“I would like to thank the commissioners and staff of the Departments of Health & Mental Hygiene, Consumer Affairs, Sanitation, Information, Technology & Telecommunications and Housing Preservation & Development for their work in this bill. I would also like to thank the Council for approving this legislation.”

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What is happening to the bed bugs in NYCHA properties?

by Renee Corea on March 15, 2009

in Bed Bug Task Force,Featured,Issues and Challenges

The New York City Housing Authority cannot keep up with the bed bug complaints in its properties.

Consider the numbers:

And this is the dismal picture in just one housing development in Manhattan:

NYCHA has a policy of three bed bug service calls per complaint. Clearly, it’s not happening. Not even close. Leaving tenants to their own devices when it comes to bed bug infestations virtually guarantees infestations will spread.

Building-wide infestations are extremely costly to manage. Consider the case of 260 Nassau Street, a provincially-managed building in Winnipeg, Manitoba, that was evacuated last week—all 118 tenants—for 5 days for intensive bed bug treatment. The residents’ belongings were heat-treated and they were temporarily housed in hotels. The entire annual pest control budget for this building, $65,000, was to be blown in this venture. This is on top of the $130,000 that has already been spent to try to control bed bugs at 260 Nassau Street since 2007.

We all know that NYCHA’s financial situation is dire.

But the bed bugs must be eradicated everywhere in our city.

There aren’t yet, in New York City, low-cost bed bug preparation or control services. There will be, later this year, we hope. But not yet. And we all know how fast bed bugs spread.

One more thing we know: NYCHA does not have a seat on the new bed bug advisory board.

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What we need is true collaboration

by Renee Corea on March 15, 2009

in Bed Bug Task Force

What appears so effortless and natural in other cities has to be legislated in our own.

No matter, we can do this too. And we will.

But our first hope is that our city agencies will truly collaborate with each other and with the new bed bug advisory board.

It is going to be difficult but not impossible.

The AP story about about the New York City Council’s passing of Intro 57-A, the bed bug advisory bill, is notable for this:

In the meantime, the city health department is producing a detailed bedbug control guide, which officials estimate will be completed by June. The department also plans to update its Web site with more advice about controlling an infestation and other tips.

and this:

The housing department is also starting an online class on identifying bedbugs, conditions that allow them to thrive and the best ways to get rid of them.

I suppose it’s good that New York City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) and the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) have moved on from their standard fare (in the case of DOHMH, “bed bugs don’t spread disease,” and in the case of HPD, “bed bugs are only a fraction” of housing violations). And I recognize that they have to say something to reporters.

But this is symptomatic of the problems we have. DOHMH is developing educational materials on its own without, to our knowledge, consultation and advice. HPD has already done the same and now plans to put its educational materials on the web, again, without consultation or collaboration. This duplication of efforts and resources is not what we want. Ideally, we want a single, interactive web resource and good print materials with wide distribution. It would be best if DOHMH, HPD and the Department of Sanitation collaborated on this project.

Yes, an update (upgrade, really) of DOHMH educational materials about bed bugs is sorely needed and overdue. I’m very happy DOHMH has finally announced this project—and we know their understanding of the seriousness of our bed bug problems has evolved; these are good people and we expect their work will be very valuable. In fact, we have been looking forward to it for some time.

But in order to make our point we have to say that their current fact sheet appears to have been written for some mythical city of homeowners with zero mention of the difficulties and requirements of bed bug control in multi-unit buildings.

This is such an essential element of bed bug education for our city that it simply cannot be overlooked in a credible resource.

Even the USDA’s 1970s pamphlet on controlling bed bugs (yes, the one ridiculed and banned by Reagan adviser Edwin Meese) had an excellent statement on dispersal, at the end of its guide for mixing sprays (and on that, of course, lindane was at the top of the list!):

Bed bugs in hotels, apartments, and other multiple-type dwelling places may spread quickly from one unit to another. If they are found in one unit, the owner or manager of the building should have all the units inspected, and should arrange for control of any infestations revealed by the inspection.

Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture. 1972. How to control bed bugs. USDA Leaflet No. 453. USDA. Washington D.C.

That’s what we’re talking about.

But we don’t know whether DOHMH intends to address this aspect appropriately.

Will they? We certainly hope so. But the only guarantee is if they choose to work with the advisory board and cooperate with others.

At this point, we really must beg them to do so.

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Mayor will sign bed bug advisory board bill on March 18

by Renee Corea on March 13, 2009

in Bed Bug Task Force,Events,Legislation,News

So, this is really happening.

Mayor Bloomberg will sign New York City’s bed bug advisory board legislation on Wednesday, March 18, at 3:30 p.m. in the press briefing room, the Blue Room, at City Hall.

The public can attend and offer brief comments.

Our heartfelt thanks to Council Member Gale Brewer who introduced this bill in 2005 and to the Speaker for putting this issue on the agenda. This is the New York City Council voting record on the bill, for the sake of completeness.

We will now get to work on the small matter of our hopes and expectations, now that this is really, truly happening.

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A bed bug advisory board for New York City

by Renee Corea on March 6, 2009

in Bed Bug Task Force,Featured,Legislation,News

Dear friends, we share the following announcement from Council Member Gale Brewer, and we do so not without some feeling. So, our discussion of our thoughts and hopes for the advisory board will come later. For now, some modest celebrating is in order. Enjoy.

Dear New Yorker:

Thank you for your advocacy on the creation of a bed bug task force. Because I share that goal, I introduced Intro 57-2006 which prohibits the sale of reconditioned mattresses and calls for the formation of a bed bug task force.

On Tuesday, February 24, 2009, the Council Committees on Health, Consumer Affairs and Sanitation held a public hearing on Introductions 57-2006, 872-2008 and 873-2008. Entomologists, exterminators, health care professionals, advocates and members of the public offered testimony for 5 hours in Council Chambers. Representatives from the following NYC Departments: Health and Mental Hygiene, Housing Preservation and Development, Consumer Affairs and Sanitation all testified in support of the creation of a Bed Bug task force.

I am pleased to announce that the Council’s Committee on Consumer Affairs is scheduled to vote on Intro 57A-2006, which creates a Bed Bug Advisory Board, on Wednesday, March 11, 2009 at 10am in the Committee Room of City Hall. The text of the final bill is below. The measure is expected to pass and it will then be voted on the same day by the full Council at the Stated Council Meeting, which is scheduled to start at 1pm in the Council Chambers. All members of the public are invited to attend, although there will be no opportunity to offer testimony during either meeting.

After the Council approves the bill (which it is fully expected to do!), the Mayor has 30 days to sign it into law. We will share the bill signing information with you as soon as it available as you are all invited to attend.

We still have a long way to go in addressing bed bugs in our City, but thank you for your tireless efforts in getting us to this important milestone.

Sincerely,

Gale A. Brewer

City Council, District 6: Manhattan

Int. No. 57-A

By Council Members Brewer, The Speaker (Council Member Quinn), Foster, Gentile, Gerson, Gonzalez, James, Mark-Viverito, Martinez, Mendez, Nelson, Palma, Sanders Jr., Weprin, White Jr., Koppell, Liu, Recchia Jr., Sears, Vallone Jr., Garodnick, Jackson, Avella, Arroyo, Dickens, Mealy and Lappin

..Title

A Local Law in relation to the creation of a Bed Bug Advisory Board.

..Body

Be it enacted by the Council as follows:

Section 1. Legislative findings and declaration. Sometimes referred to as “red coats,” “chinches,” or “mahogany flats,” bed bugs, Cimex lectularius Linnaeus, are blood-feeding parasites of humans, chickens, bats and occasionally domesticated animals. Bed bugs are wingless and spread from infested to non-infested areas through the transportation of clothing, luggage, furniture and bedding. In the early stages of infestation, bed bugs are found mainly in the tufts, seems and folds of the mattress and bed covers. However, they later spread to cracks and crevices in the bedsteads.

According to the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (“DOHMH”), bed bugs often seek refuge in bedding during the day and feed on occupants at night. Bed bugs feed primarily on humans by piercing the skin as people sleep. Although bed bugs are not generally considered human disease carriers, they inject a fluid to assist in drawing blood, which causes a welt that becomes irritated, inflamed and uncomfortable. After feeding, bed bugs crawl back into hiding, where they may remain for 80 to 140 days before returning to feed.

Bed bug infestations diminished substantially after the development and use of modern insecticides, such as DDT. However, pest management professionals have noticed a marked increase in bed-bug related complaints since 1995. Experts believe this may be related to the increased number of people traveling and returning from abroad with these insects hiding in their suitcases and clothing.

According to the DOHMH, the use of appropriate pesticides and the thorough cleaning of all bedding with water at extremely high temperature may help reduce the chance of infestation. However, even with professional extermination, a bed bug problem may be impossible to eliminate. If even one adult female bed bug survives, the area may quickly become infested again as the adult female lays one to five eggs every day and each egg takes only 17 to 28 days to hatch.

The Council finds that the Cimex lectularius population is ubiquitous and affects the quality of life of residents throughout the City. Based on this finding, the Council determines that it is necessary to create an advisory board to study this issue further and draft concrete recommendations for the most effective methods for treating and preventing bed bug infestations in New York City.

§2. Bed Bug Advisory Board. a. There shall be an advisory board to study health concerns associated with cimex lectularius, commonly referred to as the bed bug, and to make specific recommendations to the mayor and council for the prevention and treatment of bed bug infestations throughout the city.

b. Such advisory board shall consist of ten members as follows:

i. Three members shall be appointed by the mayor, provided that at least one such member shall be from the pest management industry and shall have experience in bed bug control and/or extermination and at least one member shall have advanced specialized training in and knowledge of entomology;

ii. Two members shall be appointed by the speaker of the council, provided that at least one such member shall have a background in community health;

iii. The commissioners of the department of health and mental hygiene, the department of consumer affairs, the department of sanitation, the department of information technology and telecommunications, and the department of housing and preservation, or the designees of such commissioners, shall serve ex officio.

iv. At its first meeting, the advisory board shall select a chairperson from among its members by majority vote of the advisory board.

c. Each member, other than members serving in an ex officio capacity, shall serve for a term of 9 months, to commence after the final member of the advisory board is appointed. Any vacancies in the membership of the advisory board shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment. A person filling such vacancy shall serve for the unexpired portion of the term of the succeeded member.

d. No member of the advisory board shall be removed from office except for cause and upon notice and hearing by the appropriate appointing official.

e. Members of the advisory board shall serve without compensation and shall meet as necessary.

f. The advisory board shall issue a report to the mayor and council no later than nine months after the final member of the advisory board is appointed. Such report shall include specific recommendations on the following topics:

i. Prevention and treatment of bed bug infestations in private dwellings;

ii. Prevention and treatment of bed bug infestations in public accommodations and institutions, including, but not limited to, schools, hotels, hospitals, nursing homes, jails and residential shelters;

iii. Tracking and reporting of bed bug infestations;

iv. Disposal of bed bug infested items;

v. Bed bug training and/or education for urban pest management professionals;

vi. Bed bug training and/or education for city workers;

vii. The development and most effective distribution of public education and resource materials on bed bug prevention and treatment, including, but not limited to, information on the rights and responsibilities of landlords, tenants and homeowners.

g. The advisory board shall terminate upon the publication of the report.

§3. This local law shall take effect immediately.

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Highs and lows, Part 2

by Renee Corea on March 2, 2009

in Bed Bug Task Force,Legislation

Part 1 is here. And don’t forget the rats!

So, now some of the highs:

Meet and Greet

It was so gratifying to say hello to the people who came to the hearing. To you! I am so thankful that people said hi and that we shook hands. Yes, we won’t mention names, but you are all awesome.

The great Lou Sorkin was in the house, of course. I sat next to New York vs Bed Bugs adviser Dr. Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann (we’d never met!) and Tim Wong of M&M Environmental. (I just met Mr. Wong that afternoon but will be forever grateful to him because when asked by one of the chairs if he supported the bills, he said yes, he did, all three of them, and it was a matter of how they would be implemented.) I only realized later that there were two representatives from WE ACT sitting next to us and I’m so sorry that I did not get to talk to them, as it was encouraging that they were there, since there were not many non-profits appearing; indeed, I think only WE ACT and Little Sisters attended. Ray Lopez was there for the whole afternoon and we testified on the same panel. I met Rick Cooper and Gil Bloom for the first time. Mr. Cooper and Mr. Bloom did not support all three bills but we are nevertheless deeply grateful for their interest in our city’s bed bug problems and their generosity in appearing before the City Council. And John Furman, aka KillerQueen, was there for most of the long afternoon. And I am so grateful that Nobugs was there too, somewhere in the audience.

Okay, that’s it for the name-dropping.

The Speaker

The Speaker said:

This is not a problem that we’re not equipped to solve.

and

I look forward to moving as quickly as possible on this legislation.

That’s what she said!

Council Member Gale Brewer

To Dr. Bobby Corrigan:

Come on, Bobby, you do the rat thing? Why can’t we do the bed bug thing?

Consumer Affairs Committee Chair Leroy Comrie

Do you agree on the concept of the task force? Who would be on the task force? How much time do you really need to come back with policies and practices? It’s an epidemic. I would hope the administration would embrace the idea of moving fast.

A bed bug task force is what we need!

We’ll have to wait for the transcript to get all the instances but I can attest to the mood in the audience when the administration witnesses all responded to even the slightest difficult question to the effect of: that would be a focus for the task force, and we support the idea of a task force, and a bed bug task force is what we need and have been waiting for all our lives. I’m only slightly, very slightly exaggerating, I promise! It was funny, but it was also a relief, and then a slight worry (why are they so in favor of a task force now?!? what do they know that we don’t?). But mostly it was good. You had to be there.

I’m not entirely sure why they’re on board now, and in such spectacular unanimity, you almost don’t want to ask too many questions and just take it and be grateful. I think it’s just the weight of accumulated evidence that all is not right in our city and something must be done about the bed bugs. And of the three bills, it’s the one that costs them nothing up front. But a task force is not a dilatory mechanism. A task force should be a working task force and it must hit the ground running. Really, there is no time.

That’s all I have for now; next we’ll probably look at some of the more problematic exchanges, serious work I’m not particularly looking forward to. I still can’t believe the amount of work that must be done in educating everyone about bed bugs. It’s a little discouraging, but we’ll talk about all that later.

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The am New York cover

by Renee Corea on March 2, 2009

in Bed Bug Task Force,News

If, like me, you missed Wednesday’s am New York, they have PDFs available and you can download the February 25 issue:

Click for PDF of Feb 25 issue of am New York

Click to download PDF of Wednesday's am New York

Dr. Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann is quoted in the article—City trying to get handle on resurgent bed bugs—as are two brave New Yorkers. I know they’re brave; they talked to a reporter!

Additional press coverage listed in the updates on the Intro 873 page.

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