The National Rural Health Association (NRHA) team submitted comments in response to the OSHA COVID-19 notice of limited reopening of comment period.
NRHA recognizes the need to protect healthcare and healthcare support service workers from occupational exposure to COVID-19 in settings where people with COVID-19 are reasonably expected to be present. As OSHA works towards permanent regulator solutions, we encourage the agency to recognize already established protocols given where healthcare providers are at this point in the pandemic. NRHA maintains the position that adding burdensome standards, like the prior ETS proposes, will not protect patients or employees. Rather it will pull limited staff and financial resources in directions that could be better used providing health care to patients, especially in rural areas. We have heard from members across the country about loss of staff due to the mandatory vaccination requirements, which perpetuates significant workforce shortages in our rural health care facilities.
Please feel free to reach out to Carrie (ccochran@ruralhealth.us) with any questions.