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The COVID-19 outbreak is at top of mind for environment, health, and safety (EHS) professionals nationwide.
On March 12, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) launched a National Emphasis Program (NEP) to protect workers at high risk of contracting the coronavirus. The NEP was launched in response to a January 21, 2021, Executive Order from President Joe Biden.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) recently approved the first elastomeric respirator without an exhalation valve, developed by the Mine Safety Appliance (MSA) Corporation. Elastomeric respirators are half-facepiece or full-facepiece respirators made with a facepiece of synthetic or natural rubber material that can be repeatedly used, cleaned, disinfected, stored, and reused.
Reduced Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) workplace inspections during the COVID-19 pandemic left U.S. workers’ safety at increased risk, the Department of Labor’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) concluded in its audit of the agency.
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) cited additional employers for failing to protect employees from COVID-19 exposures, including a Los Angeles garment manufacturing company facing $102,550 in proposed penalties. California is one of a handful of states that established an emergency temporary standard (ETS) last year for workplace COVID-19 exposures.
Several people, including one carrying a firearm, recently blocked the entrance of a Florence, Oregon, restaurant and threatened Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Oregon OSHA) compliance officers investigating violations of the state’s COVID-19 emergency temporary standard (ETS), according to the agency.
The Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) announced it had cited several more employers for failing to protect employees from COVID-19. Michigan was one of a handful of states that established emergency temporary standards (ETSs) last fall for workplace COVID-19 exposures.
Thirteen medical and scientific experts urged the Biden administration to take immediate actions to address SARS-CoV-2 inhalation hazards, including issuing an emergency Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standard. The SARS-CoV-2 virus causes COVID-19, which was declared a pandemic in March 2020. Signers of the letter to the White House, Centers for Disease Control and […]
On February 17, ASTM International (formerly the American Society for Testing and Materials) announced approval of a nonregulatory standard for barrier face coverings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The standard establishes minimum care, design, labeling, and performance requirements for reusable barrier face coverings.
The ramping up of vaccination for COVID-19 comes with rising concerns about bloodborne pathogen (BBP) exposure for vaccinators and the need for personal protective equipment (PPE), as well as steps to prevent needlestick injuries and other BBP program requirements.
The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division (Oregon OSHA) has proposed a permanent standard for workplace COVID-19 exposures. Oregon would become the second state after Virginia to adopt a permanent COVID-19 infectious disease standard.