Hazard Communication


OSHA Publishes Ethylene Oxide Exposure Monitoring Guidance

Ethylene oxide exposure levels and monitoring requirements are addressed in OSHA's recently published Small Business Guide for Ethylene Oxide. The guidance document helps employers understand the ethylene oxide (EtO) standard and explains how to monitor the air quality in workplaces where EtO is processed, used, or handled.

Study Finds Electronic Health Records Not Ready for Genetic Information

Current electronic health records (EHRs) have a long way to go to meet the challenges of genetic/genomic medicine, reports a study in the July issue of Genetics in Medicine, the official peer-reviewed journal of The American College of Medical Genetics.

EPA Considers Upping Airborne Lead Monitoring Requirements

The current rule requires air quality monitoring in areas where any industry emits at least one ton of lead to the air each year, and in the 101 urban areas with populations of 500,000 or more.

Haier America to Pay more than $500,000 Civil Penalty

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recently announced that Haier America Trading LLC, of New York City, has agreed to pay a civil penalty of $587,500 to settle allegations that the appliance manufacturer failed to inform CPSC of a defect and fire hazard in the company's Oscillating Tower Fan, model FTM140GG.

Steam Plant Fined After Worker Burned

Fall hazards, lack of personal protective equipment, and deficiencies in the plant's confined space, respirator, and lockout/tagout programs are among the 73 safety violations cited in an inspection conducted by OSHA's Concord Area Office.

thermometer showing a temperature of 110 degrees Fahrenheit

Workplace Temperature Debate Heats Up in Britain

The Health and Safety Executive seeks comments at a stakeholder forum this week in London as it reviews the issue and IOSH queries its 35,000 members.

Contractor Fined for 3rd Consecutive Year, This Time for $120,750

"The size of these fines reflects the gravity and recurring nature of these hazards, any one of which could have resulted in death or disabling injury for these workers," said Richard Mendelson, OSHA's area director for Queens, Manhattan, and Brooklyn.

Scrap Metal Facility Agrees to Remove Refrigerants before Crushing, Recycling

Chlorofluorocarbon refrigerants deplete the stratospheric, or "good" ozone layer, allowing dangerous amounts of cancer-causing ultraviolet rays from the sun to strike the earth, EPA notes. Production of some of these chemicals was stopped in 1995, and federal law strictly controls their use and handling.



Study Finds Speed Control Law Repeal Costs Lives

According to a recent study, the repeal of the federal speed control law in 1995 has resulted in speed limit increases that have caused approximately 12,500 deaths during the decade that followed.

FDA Reviewing Preliminary Safety Information on Asthma Drug Xolair

The Food and Drug Administration recently announced that it is conducting a safety review of Xolair (omalizumab), a drug used to treat certain adults and adolescents with moderate-to-severe persistent asthma.

CPSC, Health Canada Announce Recall of 4,000 Boots Due to Fall Hazard

The footwear was manufactured in Romania and sold by specialty outdoor retailers nationwide for between $140 and $400 (U.S.) and for between $200 and $500 (Canada) from December 2007 through June 2009.

Agencies Get New Guidelines for Foodborne Illness Response

These guidelines will assist local, state, and federal agencies in preventing and managing foodborne disease outbreaks through planning, detection, investigation, control, and prevention.

VPPPA Briefs Barab, Praising VPP's Contributions

The OSHA leader heard from board members and other membesr of the association of VPP participants this week.

several tower cranes in action at a commercial construction site

Britain Plans National Tower Crane Registry

As is happening in the United States, the proposed UK regulations now open for comments were prompted by high-profile incidents and deaths in the past decade.

FDA Issues Industry Draft Guidance on Drug Anti-Counterfeiting

The Food and Drug Administration has issued a draft guidance on the use of inks, pigments, flavors, and other physical-chemical identifiers (PCIDs) by manufacturers to make drug products more difficult to duplicate by counterfeiters, and to make it easier to identify the genuine version of the drug.

Study Suggests H1N1 Virus More Dangerous than Suspected

A new study of the H1N1 flu virus shows that the pathogen is more virulent than previously thought. Writing in a report published July 13 in the journal Nature, an international team of researchers led by University of Wisconsin-Madison virologist Yoshihiro Kawaoka provides a detailed portrait of the pandemic virus and its pathogenic qualities.

FDA, DOJ File Suit Citing ‘Filthy Conditions’ at Dietary Supplement Plants

The Paterson, N.J.-based companies promised to make corrections, but they failed to do so, DOJ said. The government’s complaint requests a court order to stop the companies and its officer from manufacturing and distributing the products until needed corrections are made.

Bosch Recalls Boilers Because of Fire Hazard

The recalled units, sold by wholesale distributors to plumbing and heating contractors nationwide from September 2007 through December 2007 for between $5,000 and $7,500, are white and designed to be mounted on walls.

OSHA Backs Illinois State Public Employee Protection Plan

OSHA published a notice in the July 10 edition of the Federal Register to approve a new Illinois state public employee protection plan.

Primary Care Physician Decrease Connected to Unfavorable Work Conditions

Adverse work conditions may be to blame for the decline in the number of primary care physicians nationwide, according to a study published in the latest issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.

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