As a part of these efforts, EPA's Risk Reduction Engineering Laboratory (RREL) provides staff and support to conduct waste minimization assessments under the Waste Reduction Evaluations and Assessments at Federal Sites (WREAFS) Program. Under the WREAFS program, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Cincinnati - Fort Thomas Medical Center (DVA-Cin) offered to host an assessment of pollution prevention opportunities at their facility. The study investigated the use of disposables in patient care in order to identify research opportunities for future solid waste minimization. During the assessment it became clear that DVA-Cin, driven by its sensitivity to health care costs, has in place some very effective waste minimization practices. Unlike most hospitals, DVA-Cin does not have access to private insurance and therefore cannot assign costs on a per bed basis. As a result, the generation of medical waste is well below the average level for a hospital of this size.