OSHA Recordkeeping Handbook - Msabc.net

§1904.766immediate recording of significant disorders on firstdiagnosis. Many occupational illnesses manifestthemselves through gradual onset and worsening ofthe condition. In some cases, a worker could be diagnosedwith a significant illness, such as an irreversiblerespiratory disorder, not be given medicaltreatment because no effective treatment was available,not lose time from work because the illness wasnot debilitating at the time, and not have his or hercase recorded on the Log because none of therecording criteria had been met. If such a worker leftemployment or changed employers before one of theother recording criteria had been met, this seriousoccupational illness case would never be recorded.The requirements in paragraph 1904.7(b)(7) remedythis deficiency and will thus ensure the capture ofmore complete and timely data on these injuries andillnesses….OSHA agrees with those commenters who supportedthe inclusion in the final rule of an additionalmechanism to ensure the capture of significant workrelatedinjuries and illnesses that are diagnosed by aphysician or other licensed health care professionalbut do not, at least at the time of diagnosis, meet thecriteria of death, days away from work, restrictedwork or job transfer, medical treatment beyond firstaid, or loss of consciousness. The recording of allnon-minor injuries and illnesses is consistent withthe OSH Act (see the Legal Authority section) and hasbeen the intent of the recordkeeping system formany years. The primary goal of the requirement atparagraph 1904.7(b)(7) is to produce more accurateand complete data on non-minor work-relatedinjuries and illnesses. Because the number of significantwork-related injuries and illnesses may not becaptured by one or more of the other general recordingcriteria, OSHA finds that this additional criterionis needed. However, OSHA believes that most caseswill be captured by the general recording criteria…....[T]o address the gap in case capture presentedby significant injury and illness cases that escape thegeneral recording criteria, OSHA is requiring employersto record cases of chronic, irreversible diseaseunder the Section 1904.7(b)(7) criterion. This meansthat if long-term workplace exposure to anilineresults in a chronic, irreversible liver or kidney disease,the case would be recordable at the time ofdiagnosis, even if no medical treatment is administeredat that time and no time is lost from work. Theregulatory text of paragraph 1904.7(b)(7) limits thetypes of conditions that are recordable, however, tosignificant diagnosed injury and illness cases, whichare defined as cancer, chronic irreversible diseases,fractured or cracked bones, and punctured eardrums.OSHA RECORDKEEPINGHow Should the Agency Define “Significant” Injuryor Illness?...OSHA believes that the conditions that are requiredto be recorded under Section 1904.7(b)(7) of the finalrule represent significant occupational injuries and illnessesas described in the OSH Act. Some clearlysignificant injuries or illnesses are not amenable tomedical treatment, at least at the time of initial diagnosis.For example, a fractured rib, a broken toe, or apunctured eardrum are often, after being diagnosed,left to heal on their own without medical treatmentand may not result in days away from work, but theyare clearly significant injuries. Similarly, an untreatableoccupational cancer is clearly a significant injuryor illness. The second set of conditions identified inparagraph 1904.7(b)(7), chronic irreversible diseases,are cases that would clearly become recordable atsome point in the future (unless the employee leavesemployment before medical treatment is provided),when the employee’s condition worsens to a pointwhere medical treatment, time away from work, orrestricted work are needed. By providing for recordingat the time of diagnosis, paragraph 1904.7(b)(7) ofthe final rule makes the significant, work-related conditionrecordable on discovery, a method thatensures the collection to timely data. This approachwill result in better injury and illness data and also islikely to be more straightforward for employers tocomply with, since there is no further need to trackthe case to determine whether, and at what point, itbecomes recordable.The core of the recording requirement codified atSection 1904.7(b)(7) is the employer’s determinationthat a “significant” injury or illness has been diagnosed….Inthe final rule, OSHA has adopted anapproach...focusing on two types of injury and illness:those that may be essentially untreatable, atleast in the early stages and perhaps never (fracturedand cracked bones, certain types of occupational cancer,and punctured eardrums) and those expected toprogressively worsen and become serious over time(chronic irreversible diseases). ...[T]he final rule reliesexclusively on the diagnosis of a limited class ofinjuries and illnesses by a physician or other licensedhealth care professional.Clarifying That Cases Captured by Paragraph1904.7(b)(7) Must Be Work Related...OSHA wishes to reiterate that any condition that isrecordable on the OSHA injury and illness recordkeepingforms must be work-related, and Section1904.7(b)(7) includes the term “work-related” to makethis fact clear. In addition, because the employer willbe dealing with a physician or other licensed healthHANDBOOK