Biden directs orderly implementation of EPA ethylene oxide sterilizer air-toxics rule

President Joe Biden issued a January 16, 2025 memorandum directing federal agencies to support orderly implementation of EPA's 2024 air toxics standards for ethylene oxide emissions from commercial sterilizers. The memo said ethylene oxide is associated with elevated cancer risks and that EPA's rule would sharply reduce emissions, while also recognizing that commercial sterilizers are important for medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and health-care supply chains. Biden directed agencies to coordinate with EPA, FDA, HHS, and other offices so the rule could protect public health while avoiding unnecessary disruptions to sterile medical-product supplies. The action mattered because it connected environmental health, cancer prevention, medical-device sterilization, and supply-chain management in one implementation order.