247413 Does the California Injury and Illness Prevention Program Prevent Injuries?

Tuesday, November 1, 2011: 2:45 PM

John Mendeloff, PhD , Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
Background and Objective: This presentation presents an evaluation of the effects of the California Injury and Illness Prevention Program (IIPP) on injuries. The current program, launched in 1991, requires all establishments in the State to establish written programs and implement them. Requirements include periodic training of workers, surveys of hazards, and investigation of accidents. Throughout its history, this standard has been the most frequently cited by Cal-OSHA.

Methods: Inspection data comes from the OSHA IMIS system. Injury rate information comes from several sources. One combines injuries reported to the Workers' Compensation Information System with establishment employment data from the State Department of Economic Development. Another relies on rates collected as part of the OSHA Data Initiative. With these data we examine: --what characteristics of workplaces and of inspections are associated with citations of the IIPP standard --whether aggregate industry data indicate that sectors with more inspections and more citations for IIPP violations experienced injury rate decreases relative to sectors with fewer inspections and citations for IIPP violations. --whether establishments cited for IIPP violations have higher injury rates than inspected establishments that are not cited --whether establishments cited for IIPP violations experience reductions in injury rates relative to inspected establishments that have not been cited

The paper will discuss the findings and their implications for the design of a possible federal OSHA standard on safety programs.

Learning Areas:
Occupational health and safety
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines
Public health or related public policy

Learning Objectives:
Assess whether government-mandated safety and health programs are likely to reduce injuries

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a leading scholar of the impact of public policy on occupational safety and health. I have written two books and dozens of articles on this topic and have served on committees of the National Academy of Sciences, the GAO, and the Office of Technology Assessment that focused on OSH issues. I have frequently consulted for OSHA and have been the PI on two NIOSH grants. I am now the Director of the RAND Corporation Center for Health and Safety in the Workplace.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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