Respiratory Protection

Washington — OSHA is extending its temporary leniency on annual respirator fit testing to all covered employers, not only those in the health care industry.

Washington — A new video is aimed at helping organizations – particularly those in health care – understand the qualitative fit testing process.

Durham, NC — In an effort to preserve the supply of N95 filtering facepiece respirators used by health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers at Duke Health say they have successfully tested a decontamination process that allows the masks to be reused safely.

Washington — In response to a nationwide shortage of N95 filtering facepiece respirators during the COVID-19 pandemic, OSHA has announced further temporary easing of regulations related to respiratory protection.

Triangle, VA — Citing concerns over the adjacent nature of mining work and the growing prevalence of respiratory illness in the industry, the United Mine Workers of America is calling on the Mine Safety and Health Administration to issue an emergency standard to help safeguard mine workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Millions of workers are required to wear respirators in various workplaces throughout the United States,” OSHA states, adding that compliance with the Respiratory Protection Standard (1910.134) “could avert hundreds of deaths and thousands of illnesses annually.”