Inconsistency in Worker Protection Guidance by State and Local Health Departments During the H1N1 Influenza Outbreak

Soon after the outbreak of the H1N1 influenza in the United States in late April 2009, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued consistent guidance for protecting healthcare workers from infection from H1N1 influenza. The CDC guidance included airborne precautions and the use of respiratory protection (not surgical masks) not normally recommended for seasonal flu. State and local health departments inconsistently adopted this CDC guidance which caused much confusion among healthcare employers and employees. To better understand this inconsistency, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) conducted an evaluation of twenty states and local health department's guidance for protecting healthcare workers. This poster reports on the results of that evaluation. Half of the selected health departments were found have guidance inconsistent with the CDC regarding the use of respiratory protection by healthcare workers usually recommending the use of surgical masks instead. The guidance in these ten states would result in lower occupational health protection for healthcare workers if followed by employers, which was often the situation. Some health departments never adopted the CDC guidance for H1N1. Others adopted the CDC guidance initially, but later A follow-up evaluation will be conducted during August and compared with these findings. The reasons for the inconsistency in worker protection guidance by state and local health departments and the impact on worker health protections will also be discussed.