Daycare homes and centers in Tx are allowing to use Hospital Grade Disinfectant alternatively.

Lysol Disinfectant that claims on the label to kill 99.9% of germs in 60 seconds is HG, but doesn't specify "HG" on the label. It has an EPA number. Note that some Lysol products are NOT HG.

Here are a few questions I posed to the EPA on this topic, and their responses:

1- Are the terms germicide and disinfectant synonymous?
No... A disinfectant may be limited (gram positive or negative), broad spectrum (gram positive and negative), or hospital grade (gram positive, gram negative, and pseudomonas) whereas a germicide can be equivalent to a hospital grade disinfectant.

2- Is bleach considered a hospital grade germicide? Is it safe on eating utensils, toys, crib rails; after drying? Which would be considered safer- a low-grade disinfectant like Lysol All Purpose Cleaner and Disinfectant or diluted bleach?
The Agency does not allow use of the term "safe" on pesticide products*. If you wanted to check the toxicity of each product, you would have to supply the registration number(s) for comparison. As for bleach, it is used on eating utensils for warewashing in food handling establishments after rinsing and drying.
*Note: Disinfectants are considered Pesticides and the EPA recommends that children and elderly have little to no contact with them. The negative health effects to those populations are excellerated exponentially.

3- Is it true that in order to be classified as a HGD (disinfectant) a product must only be proven to kill these 3 germs: Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa ?
Yes....

4- You mentioned that Lysol All Purpose Cleaner and Disinfectant met the criteria for a HGG, even though they do not make that claim on the label? Can you briefly explain why that is sometimes the case?
Pesticide products are permitted to "split" their labeling... This means that there is a "Master Label" on file with the Agency that has all of the permitted use sites and pests. At any time, the registrant may market to a target audience and drop other uses off the labeling. For example, if you have a hospital grade disinfectant that also has home uses, the registrant may sell 2 products under the same registration number with different label claims. One would be sold to hospitals, the other to homewoners.

Another HG Disinfectant option is Melaluca's Sol-U-Guard. I now use this.

So there are at least two options to bleach, Lysol (the one with an EPA number) and Sol-U-Guard.

If your licensing rep attempts to cite you for using one of these alternatives, show him/her the EPA number on the label.

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