CalOSHA Regulates COVID-19 For 3 More Years!

As states begin to reduce COVID-19 guidelines, the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board voted to adopt non-emergency COVID-19 prevention regulations. These regulations took effect on February 3, 2023, and will remain in effect for two years after the effective date, except for the recordkeeping subsections that will remain in effect for three years.

As with most OSHA standards, employers must have written policies, training, and recordkeeping programs in place to comply. Risk-specific controls that must be consistently evaluated and implemented include:

• Implementing a system to conduct some form of health screening so that they can exclude COVID-19 cases from the workplace until they are no longer an infection risk and implement policies to prevent transmission after a case is identified. Currently in LA County, those with COVID-19 must isolate for at least 5 days and obtain a negative test to return to work prior to 10 days.
• Providing face coverings and ensuring they are worn by employees when California Department of Public Health requires their use and when working indoors after being exposed.
• Providing respirators and training when requested by employees or during an outbreak.
• Making COVID-19 testing available at no cost and during paid time to employees following a close contact.
• Implementing and maintaining effective methods to prevent COVID-19 transmission by improving ventilation.

While California employers were hoping to reduce these polices when Governor Newsom ends the State of Emergency on February 28, 2023, they will need to track and ensure that COVID outbreaks do not occur at work for several more years. In addition to excluding COVID-19 cases from work, they will need to:

• Investigate where each case was during the past 48 hours and immediately make testing available to employees within the exposed group, and again one week later. If an employee does not test they must be excluded from work.
• Continue to make tests available to employees at least weekly until the workplace no longer qualifies as an outbreak, i.e., there are one or fewer new COVID-19 cases detected in the exposed group for a 14-day period.
• Implement ventilation changes to mechanical ventilation systems including increasing filtration efficiency to at least MERV-13, or the highest efficiency compatible with the ventilation system. Evaluate whether HEPA air filtration units are needed.
• Ensure all employees in the exposed group wear face coverings when indoors, or when outdoors and less than six feet from another person, unless an exception applies.

These policies must be diligently implemented to avoid a major outbreak which is defined by CalOSHA as 20 or more COVID-19 cases in an “exposed group” within a 30-day period. Major outbreaks must be reported to CalOSHA and more strict controls must be implemented. If a major outbreak occurs, employers should be prepared for a thorough investigation from CalOSHA.

CMI’s industrial hygiene professionals have been on the forefront of assisting California employers to implement COVID-19 prevention programs. Please reach out if you have questions or need any assistance with this standard.

Written by Betsy Lovensheimer, CIH, CSP, Senior Vice President