Health Care Workers

Washington — The U.S. District Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on April 4 heard oral arguments on why it should order OSHA to issue a permanent standard on COVID-19 for the health care industry.

Aurora, CO — “Lack of recognition as frontline workers” adds emotional strain to the physical demands, staffing obstacles and COVID-19 concerns of workers who clean and sanitize health care facilities and equipment, results of a recent University of Colorado study suggest.

Geneva — Health care workers who treat COVID-19 patients deserve more robust occupational safety and health programs, according to the World Health Organization and the International Labor Organization.

Washington — OSHA is reopening its rulemaking record on a proposed final rule on COVID-19 focused on health care workers and will host a virtual public hearing next month.

Washington — OSHA recently announced the start of a three-month increase of inspections at hospitals and nursing care facilities that treat COVID-19 patients.

Silver Spring, MD — Claiming the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is “once again responding to political pressures from those desperate to remove any safety protocols during this deadly pandemic that is still causing unacceptable numbers of infections, hospitalizations and deaths every day,” the nation’s largest union and professional association of registered nurses is calling on the agency to reverse its most recent COVID-19 guidance.

Washington — The Senate on Feb. 17 passed legislation intended to help prevent suicide, reduce burnout, and address mental and behavioral health conditions among health care professionals.

Washington — On the eve of National Caregivers Day, OSHA issued a press release urging health care employers to take immediate actions to help safeguard their workers after the industry experienced sharp increases in injuries and illness in 2020.

Sacramento, CA — Aiming to protect physicians and injured workers from exposure to COVID-19, the California Department of Industrial Relations Division of Workers’ Compensation has adopted an emergency regulation that allows medical-legal evaluations to be performed via telehealth.

Boston — Common types of N95 respirators – widely used by health care professionals providing direct care to patients with COVID-19 – can be safely reprocessed up to 25 times to help augment supplies during future pandemics, results of a recent study by Boston researchers suggest.