One thing has remained constant with U.S. healthcare: it keeps getting more expensive. The American Medical Association reports1 that medical expenditures increased by 4.6% in 2019 to $3.8 trillion. This followed a 4.7% jump in 2018 and 4.6% increase in 2016. At the same time, medical waste is one of the top contributors to greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S., according to Alan Robin, MD, emeritus professor at Johns Hopkins University, and studies show that one staffed hospital bed alone produces more than 30 pounds of waste per day.