Health Care Worker Needlestick Prevention Act

Summary

Health Care Worker Needlestick Prevention Act - Directs the Secretary of Labor, acting through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), to amend the bloodborne pathogens standard to require that: (1) employers utilize needleless systems and sharps with engineered sharps injury protections in their work sites to prevent the spread of bloodborne pathogens; and (2) non-managerial direct care health care workers of employers participate in the identification and evaluation of such systems and sharps. Provides an exemption where an employer demonstrates that needleless systems and sharps: (1) do not promote employee safety, interfere with patient safety, or interfere with the success of a medical procedure under certain circumstances in the employer's work facility; or (2) are not commercially available to the employer. (Sec. 2) Includes under such revised standard requirements relating to: (1) exposure control plans; (2) sharps injury logs; and (3) worker training in the use of such systems and sharps. (Sec. 3) Requires the Director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to establish and maintain a national database on existing needleless systems and sharps with engineered sharps injury protections. Requires the Director to: (1) develop a set of evaluation criteria for use by employers, employees, and other persons in evaluating and selecting such systems and sharps; (2) develop a model training curriculum to train employers, employees, and other persons in such evaluation process, and provide requested technical assistance to the extent feasible; and (3) establish a national system to collect comprehensive data on needlestick injuries to healthcare workers, including data on mechanisms to analyze and evaluate prevention. Authorizes NIOSH access to information recorded by employers in sharps injury logs. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 5) Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to require hospitals, as a condition of their Medicare program participation, to comply with the bloodborne pathogen standard as amended under this Act with respect to hospital employees, even if they are not otherwise subject to such standard because they are exempt from OSHA regulation.

This text is taken from the official record. PoliticalRepo does not editorialize.

Timeline

1. 26 May 1999

   Introduced

   Read twice and referred to the Committee on HELP.

   Source: IntroReferral

2. 26 May 1999

   Introduced

   Introduced in Senate

   Source: IntroReferral

3. 21 July 1999

   Floor

   Star Print ordered on the bill.

   Source: Floor

Votes

No vote records are attached yet.

Versions

• Introduced in Senate · 26 May 1999 · Official file

Documents

3 official files

• Introduced in Senate (text)

  Introduced in Senate · EN · 26 May 1999

  ViewDownloadOpen at official source

• Introduced in Senate (PDF)

  Introduced in Senate · EN · 26 May 1999

  ViewDownloadOpen at official source

• Introduced in Senate

  summary · EN · 26 May 1999

  Open at official source

Sponsors

• Rep. Boxer, Barbara [D-CA-6] · D · Sponsor
• Sen. Reid, Harry [D-NV] · D · Sponsor
• Charles Schumer · D · Cosponsor
• Sen. Kerry, John F. [D-MA] · D · Cosponsor
• Sen. Wellstone, Paul D. [D-MN] · D · Cosponsor
• Sen. Kennedy, Edward M. [D-MA] · D · Cosponsor
• Sen. Inouye, Daniel K. [D-HI] · D · Cosponsor
• · sshr00 · Standing

Related records

• related to → Health Care Worker Needlestick Prevention Act