The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) recent Updated Interim Enforcement Response Plan for COVID-19 (Response Plan) was issued on the same day it announced its National Emphasis Program (NEP). Healthcare employers will continue to be a target of OSHA’s inspection efforts pursuant to the NEP. The Response Plan provides directions for OSHA compliance officers on how to conduct COVID-19 inspections.

The Response Plan details the categories of documents compliance officers should request. It also identifies specific standards that are most applicable to infectious diseases, which are:

  • Recording and Reporting Occupational Injuries and Illness;
  • Personal Protective Equipment;
  • Respiratory Protection;
  • Sanitation;
  • Accident Prevention Signs and Tags;
  • Access to Employee Exposure and Medical Records; and
  • The General Duty Clause of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.

The Response Plan also suggests OSHA will expect stricter compliance than it did during the early stages of the pandemic. For example, the Response Plan acknowledges OSHA has been exercising some enforcement discretion for the recording of COVID-19 cases, but notes that “employers should have an increased ability to determine whether an employee’s COVID-19 illness is likely work-related” in light of increased understanding of how the infection is transmitted and prevented.

Many healthcare providers have struggled with shortages of supplies and personal protective equipment, such as respirators. OSHA previously used enforcement discretion in addressing those situations. However, shortages are unlikely to serve as a compelling excuse for non-compliance. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently revised its guidance about sanitizing and reusing respirators due to an increase in supply. The Response Plan similarly states that shortages of health and safety equipment, such as N95 filtering facepiece respirators, are “becoming less of a barrier to compliance.” The Response Plan instructs compliance officers to evaluate the employer’s good faith efforts to comply with OSHA standards, including whether the employer “thoroughly explored alternative options to comply with the applicable standard(s),” like remote communications or training and efforts to obtain alterative respiratory protection devices. However, the Response Plan reiterates that enforcement discretion will not be exercised when respirators and other supplies and services are “readily available.”

A summary of the Response Plan can be found here.

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Photo of Catherine A. Cano Catherine A. Cano

Catherine A. Cano is a principal in the Omaha, Nebraska, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. Catherine represents management in all areas of labor and employment law.

Catherine helps clients navigate obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act, Family and Medical Leave Act, and…

Catherine A. Cano is a principal in the Omaha, Nebraska, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. Catherine represents management in all areas of labor and employment law.

Catherine helps clients navigate obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act, Family and Medical Leave Act, and state disability and leave laws. She also counsels clients on workplace drug and alcohol issues, including developing substance abuse policies. Catherine has defended more than 100 charges of discrimination filed with federal, state and local administrative agencies, and regularly appears before the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Iowa Civil Rights Commission and Nebraska Equal Opportunity Commission. Catherine represents in employers in federal and state court proceedings and has successfully defended multiple employment arbitrations.

Catherine’s practice also includes assisting clients with union organization campaigns, collective bargaining, grievance arbitrations, and unfair labor practice charges. Catherine also has experience defending employers against whistleblower claims filed with the Occupational Health and Safety Administration.