Agreed. Ice machines aren't supposed to depend on chlorine in the water to keep them clean. Commercial ice machines need to be cleaned and sanitized every six months in normal settings, and you'd probably expect a hospital to do it even more frequently.

The article says:

> Although hospital records indicated that the machines had been maintained and cleaned per the manufacturer's instructions, the researchers noted visible bacterial biofilms on the inside components of the machines.

But it seems like a hospital should have its own standards for cleaning and disinfecting, not relying on manufacturer cleaning instructions for a non-medical device being used for patients with highly elevated risk of infection.

The ice machine would not have gotten dirty(bacteria growing) if the water had chloramine in it. The article says the service and maintenance were performed correctly according to manufacturers specs.

I worked in restaurants all through college, you absolutely must clean the ice machines frequently. Sounds like they assumed they were self cleaning or just were not cleaning them often or thoroughly enough.