Industries
Medical Office Cleaning in NYC
A janitorial vendor needs a Business Associate Agreement only if it creates, receives, maintains or transmits protected health information on your behalf — for example handling records or devices. Routine cleaning where PHI is merely incidentally visible does not trigger a BAA, but a confidentiality agreement, documented workforce training and access controls are still expected under 45 CFR §164.530.
Most cleaning companies marketing to medical practices get the BAA question wrong in one direction or the other — either insisting they need one to sound compliant, or waving it away entirely. The line is where PHI handling begins.
What a Compliant Vendor Actually Maintains
Time-stamped access logs. Signed confidentiality acknowledgements with annual refreshers and retained training records. Documented incident reporting. Chain-of-custody records where sensitive materials are involved. General and professional liability insurance. If a vendor cannot produce those documents, the BAA question is academic.
Protocol, Not Promises
Exam room terminal cleaning uses EPA-registered disinfectants at their labelled contact time — the surface stays visibly wet for the full dwell, which is one to ten minutes depending on the product. Colour-coded microfibre prevents cross-contamination between restrooms, exam rooms and administrative areas. Our crews never move or read paper, never handle sharps containers, and never open a shred bin.
New York Regulated Medical Waste
New York has its own layer on top of HIPAA. Regulated medical waste is governed by ECL Article 27 Title 15, 6 NYCRR Subparts 360-10 and 360-17 and Part 364, Public Health Law §§1389-aa to 1389-gg, 10 NYCRR Part 70 and NYC Administrative Code §16-120.1. A Medical Waste Tracking Form is required, and RMW other than sharps must be bagged and then packaged in leak-proof rigid or semi-rigid containers. Your licensed RMW vendor handles that stream. We do not touch it, and any cleaning company that offers to is a liability.
OSHA Obligations That Apply to Our Staff
Anyone working in a clinical environment falls under the OSHA Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, 29 CFR §1910.1030 — which means an exposure control plan, a Hepatitis B vaccination offer and documented training. Ask any vendor for their exposure control plan. It is a short document and its absence tells you a great deal.
Our Protocol for This Environment
- Exam room terminal clean with EPA-registered disinfectant held at full label contact time
- Colour-coded microfibre: separate systems for restroom, clinical and administrative areas
- Never move, read, photograph or discard paper — documents are cleaned around, not handled
- Screen privacy protocol: monitors are not woken, repositioned or interacted with
- Locked shred bins moved to the collection point without ever being opened
- Sharps containers not handled, moved or emptied under any circumstances
- Signed confidentiality agreements and annual HIPAA-awareness training, records retained
- OSHA Bloodborne Pathogens exposure control plan, with Hepatitis B vaccination offered to staff
- Waiting room and high-touch disinfection on an elevated frequency through flu season
Get a Scope Built for Your Space
We will walk the space, ask the questions specific to your environment, and send back a written scope, a fixed price and the exclusions.
Get a Scope for This Space
Written scope, fixed price and exclusions, usually within two business days.
We reply to every request. If your building needs a Certificate of Insurance or vendor registration, we handle that paperwork before the first night.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do we need a BAA with our cleaning company?
Only if the vendor handles protected health information as part of the service — for example secure document destruction, records-room access as a service, or handling devices containing ePHI. Routine cleaning where PHI is incidentally visible does not require one. Many practices execute a confidentiality agreement instead, which is usually the right instrument. Confirm the determination with your compliance counsel and document it either way.
Do you handle regulated medical waste?
No. RMW is a licensed stream under New York State and New York City rules and it is handled by your RMW vendor. We do not touch sharps containers, red bags or any clinical waste. We handle ordinary office waste and recycling only.
Can you clean while the practice is open?
Yes, and many practices prefer a day porter covering restroom rounds and waiting-area resets with the terminal room cleaning done after close. That combination usually works better than either alone.
Ready for a Cleaning Contract You Can Actually Read?
Send us your square footage and how many nights you need. You get a written scope, a fixed monthly price, and the SLA in the same document — usually within two business days.