Bloodborne-pathogen coverage at a school

May 8, 1996

The Honorable Tim Hutchinson
U.S. House of Representatives
[Recipient address omitted]
Dear Congressman Hutchinson:

This is in further response to your letter of November 27, 1995, concerning issues raised by your constituent, Ms. Darlene Smith, Executive Director of the Benton County Sunshine School, Inc., in Bentonville, Arkansas. In her letter, Ms. Smith questions the degree to which the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) Bloodborne Pathogen Standard must be instituted at Sunshine School and other such institutions, and whether regulatory relief can be afforded to those institutions experiencing limited financial resources. Please accept our apology for the delay in this response.

Your first question asked specifically whether the Sunshine School is actually going beyond what is required by the current bloodborne pathogens statutes. As background, please bear in mind that the Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, 29 CFR 1910.1030, is designed to protect the nation's workers from exposure to the Hepatitis B Virus (HBV), the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), and other bloodborne pathogens. Hepatitis B infection may result in serious illness, long term disability, and death. The HIV virus causes AIDS, for which there currently is no cure, and which eventually results in death. These viruses, as well as other organisms that cause bloodborne diseases, are found in human blood and certain other body fluids. Therefore, employers have a particular responsibility to ensure that employees do not come into direct contact with blood or other potentially infectious materials while performing their job.

One of the central provisions of the bloodborne pathogens standard is that employers are responsible for determining which job classification or specific tasks and procedures reasonably can be anticipated to result in worker contact with blood or other potentially infectious materials (OPIM). Ms. Smith stated that every employee must be offered the Hepatitis B vaccine. However, only those employees with occupational exposure must be offered the vaccine. In a school, such as the Sunshine School, only certain employees may have jobs which involve occupational exposure, although OSHA expects an employer to take into account all potential circumstances of exposure (such as biting and contact with skin lesions) when determining which, if any, employees in a facility have occupational exposure. If it is determined that an employee has occupational exposure, defined as reasonable anticipated exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials as the result of performing one's job duties, then that employee is covered by all sections of the standard including training, vaccination, personal protective equipment, and so forth. Employees who do not have occupational exposure are not covered by the scope of the standard.

Your second question concerned regulatory relief that may extend to institutions such as the Sunshine school. Shortly, following the promulgation of the Standard, OSHA implemented a policy that allowed offering the Hepatitis B vaccine following an exposure incident to those employees who render first aid as a collateral duty. Employees who are designated as responsible for rendering medical assistance as part of their job duties are covered by the scope of this standard. However, individuals whose only exposure is in rendering first aid as a collateral duty, may be offered the Hepatitis B vaccine after an exposure incident. This policy limits the number of individuals who must initially be offered the vaccine. Please refer to the enclosed news release for additional information on the circumstances under which this exception would apply.

Ms. Smith might also be interested to know that OSHA offers a free Consultation Service to employers who wish to find out about potential hazards at their worksites, receive information about hazard abatement and improve their occupational safety and health management systems. The consultant, along with employer input, determine appropriate hazard abatement time frames. This service is offered in all 50 States to small employers in high hazard industries and must be requested by the employer. It is delivered by state governments using well trained safety and health consultants. The Consultation Service is completely separate from OSHA's enforcement program and employers' names are kept confidential. If Ms. Smith is interested in finding out more about this program, she may contact the Consultation Service in her State at the following address:

Mr. Clark E. Thomas
Labor Safety Administrator
OSHA Consultation
Arkansas Department of Labor
[Recipient address omitted]
Telephone: (501) 682-4522

In conclusion, in schools such as the Benton County Sunshine School, only certain employees may have jobs which involve occupational exposure. However, OSHA expects an employer to take into account all potential circumstances of exposure. Employees who do not have occupational exposure are not covered by the scope of this standard.

We appreciate your concerns for safety and health in the workplace, and trust the above provides the information you have requested. Should you have additional concerns on this matter, please do not hesitate to contact [the Office of Health Enforcement at (202) 693-2190] for further information.

Sincerely,
Joseph A. Dear
Assistant Secretary

Enclosure

[Requester letter reproduced on OSHA page; omitted here.]

[Corrected 12/6/2024]