New OSHA regulations on reporting workplace deaths, hospitalizations take effect

As of Jan. 1, 2015, all employers under the jurisdiction of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are required to report all work-related fatalities within eight hours and all in-patient hospitalizations, amputations, and losses of an eye within 24 hours of finding out about the incident.

Even employers who are exempt from routinely keeping OSHA records due to company size—such as companies with 10 or fewer employees— must comply with the new reporting guidelines. These firms typically do not have to routinely keep injury and illness records.

Before the new regulations went into effect, employers only had to report all work-related fatalities and hospitalizations of three or more employees involved in the same incident.

There are some circumstances that are exempt from the reporting requirements including:

·         Only fatalities occurring within 30 days of the work-related incident must be reported.

·         For an inpatient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye, incidents must be reported to OSHA only if they occur within 24 hours of the work-related incident.

·         Employers do not have to report an in-patient hospitalization if it was for diagnostic testing or observation only.

(http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2014/12/31/351332.htm)