US Department of Labor reopens rulemaking record, schedules public hearing on proposed final rule to protect healthcare workers from COVID-19 exposure

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OSHA National News Release

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U.S. Department of Labor

March 22, 2022



US Department of Labor reopens rulemaking record, schedules public hearing
on proposed final rule to protect healthcare workers from COVID-19 exposure
As OSHA works towards permanent regulatory solution, employers must
continue to comply with General Duty Clause obligations

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has reopened the rulemaking record partially and scheduled an informal public hearing to seek comments on specific topics that relate to the development of a final standard to protect healthcare and healthcare support service workers from workplace exposure to the COVID-19 virus.

Submit comments online, identified by Docket No. OSHA-2020-0004. Submit written comments by the deadline of April 22, 2022.

Individuals interested in testifying at the hearing must submit their notice of intention to appear no later than 14 days after the publication of the Federal Register Notice. The hearing will begin on April 27, 2022 and will take place online. If necessary, the hearing will continue on subsequent days. Learn more in the Federal Register notice.

On June 21, 2021, OSHA issued an emergency temporary standard to protect workers in healthcare settings from occupational exposure to COVID-19. The Emergency Temporary Standard – which also served as a proposed rule – focused on healthcare workers most likely to have contact with people infected with the virus.

The agency is reopening the rulemaking record to allow for new data and comments on topics, including the following:

• Alignment with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's recommendations for healthcare infection control procedures.
• Additional flexibility for employers.
• Removal of scope exemptions.
• Tailoring controls to address interactions with people with suspected or confirmed COVID-19.
• Employer support for employees who wish to be vaccinated.
• Limited coverage of construction activities in healthcare settings.
• COVID-19 recordkeeping and reporting provisions.
• Triggering requirements based on community transmission levels.
• The potential evolution of SARS-CoV-2 into a second novel strain.
• The health effects and risk of COVID-19 since the ETS was issued.

As OSHA works towards a permanent regulatory solution, employers must continue to comply with their obligations under the General Duty Clause, Personal Protective Equipment and Respiratory Protection Standards, as well as other applicable OSHA standards to protect their employees against the hazard of COVID-19 in the workplace. More information, including compliance assistance materials, are available.

Learn more about the issue and obtain compliance assistance materials.

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Media Contacts:

Mandy McClure, 202-693-4675, mcclure.amanda.c@dol.gov
Denisha Braxton, 202-693-5061, braxton.denisha.l@dol.gov

Release Number: 22-509-NAT

https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/national/03222022

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View Rule

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DOL/OSHA

RIN: 1218-AC46

Publication ID: Spring 2022

Title: Infectious Diseases
Abstract: Employees in health care and other high-risk environments face long-standing infectious disease hazards such as tuberculosis (TB), varicella disease (chickenpox, shingles), and measles, as well as new and emerging infectious disease threats, such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), and pandemic influenza. Health care workers and workers in related occupations, or who are exposed in other high-risk environments, are at increased risk of contracting TB, SARS, Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), COVID-19, and other infectious diseases that can be transmitted through a variety of exposure routes. OSHA is examining regulatory alternatives for control measures to protect employees from infectious disease exposures to pathogens that can cause significant disease. Workplaces where such control measures might be necessary include: health care, emergency response, correctional facilities, homeless shelters, drug treatment programs, and other occupational settings where employees can be at increased risk of exposure to potentially infectious people. A standard could also apply to laboratories, which handle materials that may be a source of pathogens, and to pathologists, coroners' offices, medical examiners, and mortuaries.
Agency: Department of Labor(DOL)	Priority: Economically Significant
RIN Status: Previously published in the Unified Agenda	Agenda Stage of Rulemaking: Proposed Rule Stage
Major: Undetermined	Unfunded Mandates: Undetermined
CFR Citation: 29 CFR 1910
Legal Authority: 5 U.S.C. 533 29 U.S.C. 657 and 658 29 U.S.C. 660 29 U.S.C. 666 29 U.S.C. 669 29 U.S.C. 673

Legal Deadline: None

Timetable: Request for Information (RFI) 05/06/2010 75 FR 24835 RFI Comment Period End 08/04/2010 Analyze Comments 12/30/2010 Stakeholder Meetings 07/05/2011 76 FR 39041 Initiate SBREFA 06/04/2014 Complete SBREFA 12/22/2014 NPRM 05/00/2023

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis Required: Yes	Government Levels Affected: Local, State
Small Entities Affected: Businesses, Governmental Jurisdictions	Federalism: Undetermined
Included in the Regulatory Plan: Yes
RIN Data Printed in the FR: Yes
Agency Contact: Andrew Levinson Deputy Director, Directorate of Standards and Guidance Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration 200 Constitution Avenue NW, FP Building, Room N-3718, Washington, DC 20210 Phone:202 693-1950 Email: levinson.andrew@dol.gov