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§ 631.3. Department

Purdon's Pennsylvania Statutes and Consolidated StatutesTitle 35 P.S. Health and SafetyEffective: April 12, 2002

Purdon's Pennsylvania Statutes and Consolidated Statutes
Title 35 P.S. Health and Safety (Refs & Annos)
Chapter 3B. Bloodborne Pathogen Standard Act
Effective: April 12, 2002
35 P.S. § 631.3
§ 631.3. Department
Currentness
(a) Adoption of standard.--Within six months of the effective date of this act, the department shall adopt a bloodborne pathogen standard governing public employees. The standard shall be at least as prescriptive as the standard promulgated by the Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration and shall include the following:
(1) A requirement that needleless systems and sharps with engineered sharps injury protection be included as engineering and work practice controls. Engineering controls under this paragraph shall not be required if none is available in the marketplace.
(2) A requirement that each public employee receive education on the use of an engineering control before a control is introduced into the clinical setting.
(3) A requirement that each employer develop and implement an effective written exposure control plan which includes procedures for all of the following:
(i) Updating the written exposure control plan when necessary, but at least once each year, to reflect progress in implementing needleless systems and sharps with engineered sharps injury protection.
(ii) Recording information concerning exposure to bodily fluid in a sharps injury log. This subparagraph includes:
(A) Date and time of the exposure.
(B) Type and brand of sharp involved in the exposure.
(C) Description of the exposure. This clause includes:
(I) Job classification of the exposed public employee.
(II) Department or work area where the exposure occurred.
(III) Procedure which the exposed public employee was performing at the time of the exposure.
(IV) How the exposure occurred.
(V) Body part involved in the exposure.
(VI) If the sharp had engineered sharps injury protection, whether the protective mechanism was activated and whether the injury occurred before the protective mechanism was activated, during activation of the mechanism or after activation of the mechanism.
(VII) If the sharp had no engineered sharps injury protection, whether and how such a mechanism could have prevented the injury. This subclause requires statement of the basis for the assessment.
(VIII) An assessment of whether any other engineering, administrative or work practice control could have prevented the injury. This subclause requires statement of the basis for the assessment.
(b) Additional measures.--The department shall consider additional measures to prevent sharps injuries or exposure to bodily fluid. This subsection includes training and educational requirements, increased use of vaccinations, strategic placement of sharps containers as close to the work area as practical and increased use of personal protective equipment.
(c) Regulations.--The department may promulgate regulations to implement this act.

Credits

2001, Dec. 13, P.L. 873, No. 96, § 3, effective in 120 days.
35 P.S. § 631.3, PA ST 35 P.S. § 631.3
Current through 2023 Regular Session Act 1. Some statute sections may be more current, see credits for details.
End of Document