ARTICLE
The Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health recommends against a construction-specific COVID-19 rule to protect construction crews working in hospitals. Federal safety regulators should protect construction crews working in hospitals from Covid-19 infections by making the measures part of the proposed permanent healthcare standard, not a separate construction rule, an agency advisory panel said. The committee’s decision makes it unlikely OSHA will pursue a separate rule focused on the construction industry. The approved healthcare proposal would require employers in that industry to ensure that construction workers are informed of the location of COVID-19 patients. OSHA had asked the committee to approve either including construction workers in the proposed healthcare rule, or that the agency draft a separate rule to address COVID-19 at healthcare building projects. —FCA