Workplace exposures

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Arlington, VA – One year after a respirable coal dust rule went into effect, sampling results are showing that mines are complying with reforms and better protecting coal miners from black lung disease, the Mine Safety and Health Administration recently announced.

Silver Spring, MD – Almost one-fifth of progressive lung diseases among construction workers may be attributable to workplace exposures to vapors, gases, dusts and fumes, according to a study from the Center for Construction Research and Training (also known as CPWR) and Duke University.

Washington – OSHA is proposing to dramatically lower its 34-year-old permissible exposure limit for beryllium to one-tenth of its current level, the agency announced Aug. 6.

Cincinnati – Employers whose workers are exposed to diacetyl now can obtain guidance from a new NIOSH document.

Washington – A new OSHA directive based on public health guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updates procedures for carrying out inspections and issuing citations for workplace exposure to tuberculosis.

Atlanta – Multiple cases of melioidosis – a bacterial infection that has potentially fatal consequences – reinforce the need for researchers in laboratories to follow proper safety procedures when working with unknown pathogens, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Washington – Although the number of silicosis deaths has declined in the past decade, the occupational lung disease still kills about 100 people every year, according to a new study from NIOSH.

Albany, NY – New York lawmakers have agreed to legislation that will strengthen safety and health protections for the state’s nail-salon workers.