The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has less than a week to extend its Emergency interim standard COVID-19 prevention in medical institutions, but no action has been taken to make the policy permanent, and stakeholders are not sure what will happen next.

OSHA’s emergency interim standards should be completed within six months of publication. An OSHA spokesperson wrote in an email that the policy will remain in effect until it is replaced by a final action. The spokesperson would not say whether failure to extend the current standard will be considered a final action. The standard will expire on December 21, unless OSHA issues a final rule.

Fisher Phillips partner Kevin Troutman (Kevin Troutman) said that suppliers should continue to monitor developments, but it seems unlikely that there will be permanent federal rules. “There are still no signs of change, so I don’t think there will be OSHA activities there,” he said.

The interim policy of medical institutions that took effect on June 21 instructs employers to provide employees with paid leave to vaccinate against COVID-19, set up physical barriers in spaces where social distancing cannot be maintained, and record all employees’ COVID-19 infections, etc. The provider believes that The rules are unnecessary and repetitive, and many people ask OSHA to align them with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines and postpone the compliance date.

“We urge OSHA to withdraw this [emergency temporary standard]However, if the agency refuses to do so, we recommend that[emergencytemporarystandardsexpireattheendofsixmonthsandnotbepublishedasfinalrules”theAmericanHealthAssociationwrote[emergencytemporarystandardbeallowedtoexpireattheendofthesixmonthsandnotbepublishedasfinalrule”theAmericanHealthAssociationwrotein[?????????????????????????????”????????[emergencytemporarystandardbeallowedtoexpireattheendofthesixmonthsandnotbepublishedasafinalrule”theAmericanHealthAssociationwroteinComment Regulations in August.

However, opposition to OSHA standards is not widespread.For example, National Nurses United requires regulators to develop a permanent rule letter last month. “The pandemic is not over. The spread in the United States and many parts of the world is still severe. The possibility of increasingly dangerous mutations poses a serious threat to the safety of nurses, other medical staff, and public health,” Deborah Burr Grid, the chairman of the union wrote to the Ministry of Labor.

Melanie Paul, the principal of Jackson Lewis, wrote in an email that if OSHA does not publish permanent standards, the law will remain silent about what will happen.

Because the virus is constantly changing, permanent standards for the prevention of COVID-19 in medical institutions may be difficult to implement. Paul writes that as more employees are vaccinated since June, the standard may not even be necessary.

The U.S. Department of Labor announced on Friday the 2022 regulatory agenda, which includes the release of broader rules About infection control Being in a healthcare setting, but not knowing anything about COVID-19 standards, indicates that the agency does not intend to expand them.

Paul wrote: “The most important thing is that there is a lot of confusion surrounding these issues, and the lack of guidance and clarity on COVID-19 safety measures makes it difficult for employers to plan for the future.”

Claire Ernst, director of government affairs for the Medical Group Management Association, said that many providers thought from the beginning that the COVID-19 prevention rules in the interim standard were unnecessary because they had already taken precautions to protect patients and employees .

Ernst said: “Regardless of the way the government takes, if the news clearly indicates whether it will fail, we would be grateful.”

OSHA’s separate emergency standards guide businesses with 100 or more employees Vaccinated or tested workers To complicate matters.

Court policy Temporarily blocked, Will not affect healthcare facilities that meet COVID-19 prevention standards.However, if the prevention policy is abandoned and the vaccine requirements are restored, the vaccine policy may be applicable to medical institutions not covered by the vaccination tasks of the Medicare and Medicaid Service Center, which also Shelved Because of a lawsuit.

Troutman said that if the temporary standards expire, suppliers should continue to follow other pandemic-related OSHA guidelines so that regulators know they are taking precautions to protect workers from COVID-19. “If you deviate from that guidance, you better be prepared to explain why,” Troutman said.