Housing Bedbug Protocol
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Bedbugs are making a fast come back in the United States and are the new nuisance we will be dealing with in the near future. Bedbugs are brought in on clothing, suitcases and used furniture, to name a few. They live in mattresses and dark crevices in furniture and walls. They bite at night while you are sleeping. Bedbugs are not known to carry disease and can not hurt you. Some people do not even realize they have them while others develop rashes around the bite that is very noticeable.

The following is the protocol MIT Housing will use for any suspected bedbug problem:

• When a resident reports a pest problem to their House Manager, the House Manager immediately contacts the exterminator to investigate and confirm what insect is present.
• Never wait to notify your House Manager if you suspect you have bedbugs.  These bugs multiply and spread quickly
• Precautions are taken to contain the problem to ensure they do not spread
• All mattresses are wrapped in plastic, removed and disposed of.
• The resident must carefully remove all their bedding and all clothing in sealed plastic bags and wash them in hot water.
• Residents must check all belongings such as luggage, coats, books, book bags, etc. to ensure they are not carrying the bug with them.
• The exterminator sprays the room to kill any remaining bugs. They will monitor the room 2-3 times per week and will re-spray in 2 weeks to ensure the problem is eradicated. 
• We will contact and inspect all residents above, below and to either side the effected apartment or student room to ensure the problem is contained.
• We will give the resident a new Housing mattress and bedding if necessary to use while they deal with the problem.

It is important that this does not create unnecessary panic among the residents. There may be occasions where natural bugs are present in Residence Halls and people could easily mistake a natural bug for a bedbug. There will be disruption to all residents involved as you will have to wash all their clothing and bedding many times until they are gone but we will work closely with them until the problem is eliminated.

Click here for more information on bed bugs and what you can do.