I read with great interest Walecia Konrad’s Times’ column, “Sleeping With the Enemy” (B6, NY Edition), which spoke to the resurgence of bed bugs in the last decade.
Certainly, Ms. Konrad is correct in acknowledging the dramatic increase in reports of bed bugs and how difficult a “foe” these elusive pests have proven to be. Recent research from the National Pest Management Association (NPMA) has found that bed bug reports to pest management companies have increased 71% since 2001. From private homes to apartments to college dorms to the finest hotels, bed bugs have proven to be the great equalizer among pests. Infestations can occur – and be severe – regardless of sanitation, culture or income.
In recent years, much of the pest management industry’s efforts have been focused upon how to best identify, inspect and treat bed bugs. Although Ms. Konrad believes that there are a number of “fraudulent exterminators peddling money-wasting treatments that do not work,” this is simply not true. Further, it is not reflective of an industry that takes its professionalism seriously.
Such a generalization masks the industry’s leadership on this issue. The EPA Bed Bug Summit in April brought some of the best researchers, entomologists and experts on bed bugs together to discuss the need for widespread preventative education on this pest. NPMA’s consumer web site, Pestworld.org, not only offers consumers expert guidance in preventing and treating bed bugs with its “Bed Bug Hub,” but also offers a zip code locator, where consumers can search for licensed pest professionals who can properly identify these pests and eradicate them.
In August, NPMA – in conjunction with American Hotel and Lodging Association, the Association of Structural Pest Control Regulatory Officials and the National Apartment Association – will host its National Bed Bug Symposium. This Symposium is a proactive next step in helping to address the intense concerns that hoteliers, property/maintenance managers and multifamily housing complex owners have expressed over the resurgence of bed bugs. It will serve to provide necessary education regarding these pests and offer critical advice and resources on how to properly eradicate bed bug infestations.
Now, more than ever, consumers need to be educated as to how to avoid and address bed bug infestations in their homes. While I commend the New York Times for its continued coverage of this national resurgence of bed bugs, it is also important to fully acknowledge the work being done “on the ground” by the professional pest management industry to help stem the rapid spread of bed bugs through proper education, prevention and treatment.
Missy Henriksen
Vice President of Public Affairs, National Pest Management Association
Fairfax, VA