AGD Files Comments on OSHA’s COVID-19 Healthcare ETS
AGD submitted official comments to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) on August 20, responding to certain aspects of OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) for Occupational Exposure to COVID–19.
The OSHA ETS was issued to protect health care personnel from occupational exposure where COVID-19 is anticipated in settings where people with COVID-19 are reasonably expected to be present. The interim final rule of the ETS allowed for a compliance exception, which most dentists’ offices qualify for by continued careful prescreening to keep COVID-19 out of their practices.
AGD’s comments communicated the need for flexibility and responsiveness in future OSHA actions and did not support the notion that the interim final rule should become a permanent standard. The comments also encouraged greater coordination between federal, state, and local agencies/governments and public stakeholders, especially in terms of harmonizing guidance for workplaces.
Impact on General Dentistry: AGD appreciates that OSHA allowed the public an opportunity to weigh in the ETS and for the ETS’s approach in allowing exceptions to compliance with the rule in certain instances. AGD will continue to monitor and respond to OSHA’s regulatory efforts as they stand to impact dental offices and the practice of dentistry.
The OSHA ETS was issued to protect health care personnel from occupational exposure where COVID-19 is anticipated in settings where people with COVID-19 are reasonably expected to be present. The interim final rule of the ETS allowed for a compliance exception, which most dentists’ offices qualify for by continued careful prescreening to keep COVID-19 out of their practices.
AGD’s comments communicated the need for flexibility and responsiveness in future OSHA actions and did not support the notion that the interim final rule should become a permanent standard. The comments also encouraged greater coordination between federal, state, and local agencies/governments and public stakeholders, especially in terms of harmonizing guidance for workplaces.
Impact on General Dentistry: AGD appreciates that OSHA allowed the public an opportunity to weigh in the ETS and for the ETS’s approach in allowing exceptions to compliance with the rule in certain instances. AGD will continue to monitor and respond to OSHA’s regulatory efforts as they stand to impact dental offices and the practice of dentistry.