Who must wear a respirator?

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has added two new situations (Nos. 6 and 7 in the list below) in which an employee is required to wear a respirator. The first five are based on CDC guidelines.

According to the proposed tuberculosis standard, health care workers are required to wear a respirator when:

1. entering an isolation room;

2. performing cough-inducing or aerosol-generating procedures on an individual with suspected or confirmed infectious TB;

3. repairing or maintaining air systems that may contain aerosolized M. tuberculosis;

4. transporting an individual with suspected or confirmed infectious TB in an enclosed vehicle;

5. working in a residence where an individual with suspected or confirmed infectious TB is known to be present;

6. transporting individuals with suspected or confirmed infectious TB within the facility if those individuals are not masked;

7. working in an area where an unmasked individual with suspected or confirmed infectious TB has been segregated or otherwise confined (such as those who work in admitting areas).

Source: Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Occupational exposure to tuberculosis; proposed rule. 62 Fed Reg 54,159-54,307 (Oct. 17, 1997).