Insurance, Labor Department Issues

The Insurance industry is failing the consumer. The concept of fraud is being used by the insurance industry to deceive the public. "Our current national health care system is simple: don't get sick."

Insurance, Labor Department Issues

Main topics can be found within the left column; sub-topics and/or research reports can be found near the bottom of this page. Thank you

     The bloodborne pathogens standard addresses the broad issue of occupational exposure to blood and other potentially infectious materials and is not meant solely for employees in health care settings. Since there is no population that is risk free for human immunodeficiency virus and hepatitis B virus infectivity, any employee who has occupational exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials is included within the scope of this standard.
     It is important to note that the definition of "occupational exposure"; comprises the reasonable anticipation that the employee will come into contact with these fluids during the course of performing his or her work duties. Therefore, OSHA anticipates that this standard will impact upon all non-health care industries in a similar fashion, i.e., that employees who are designated as responsible for rendering first aid or medical assistance as part of their job duties are
to be covered by this standard. This is because it is reasonable to anticipate that an employee designated to render first aid will have occupational exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials.
     Employees who perform "Good Samaritan" acts are not, per se, covered by this standard (This worker voluntarily put himself at risk and bears the responsibility for that risk), although OSHA
would encourage an employer to offer follow-up procedures to an employee who experiences an exposure incident as the result of performing a "Good Samaritan" act. This is because such an action does not constitute "occupational exposure", as defined by the standard. The key to this issue is not whether employees have been trained in first aid, but whether they are also designated as responsible for rendering medical assistance. While many workers may be trained in first aid and CPR, not all of these employees would necessarily be designated to render first aid.

ADDITIONAL ARTICLES:

Document Name & Link to Document	Description	File Size /Type
"ADA In the Headlines"	The lawsuit claims that UPS had an unwritten policy that allowed employees to return to work, only if they had no medical restrictions. The plaintiffs also claim that UPS disseminated an "ADA compliance policy," which was implemented nationwide to delay and avoid providing accommodations for disabled workers, which is illegal.
CITY OF TULSA FIRE DEPT. v. MILLER	Keith A. Miller was a twelve-year member of the Tulsa Fire Department where he worked as a first responder. Sometime during his employment, he contracted hepatitis C. The Workers' Compensation Court found that, as is often the case in these types of claims, the claimant could not testify as to which, of several exposures, was the source of the disease. It then found the claim compensable. A three-judge panel unanimously affirmed. We sustain the order.
High Profits -- At What Cost? Manufacturer markets unsafe needles in light of epidemic	Top sales managers for Becton Dickinson and Company, the world's largest needle maker, had gathered for their quarterly meeting, and listed on the agenda was a new device that could dramatically cut into a deadly epidemic of needle sticks among health care workers… But something would go dreadfully wrong. Just as Kuhlman had feared, few of the safer needles would reach the hands of medical workers. And the epidemic would rage on.
HIV/AIDS and Health Insurance	This brochure is intended to help employers who are concerned about the impact of AIDS and other expensive illnesses on their health care costs and their businesses, especially employers with fewer than 100 employees.	48 kb pdf
How Stigma Interferes With Mental Healthcare	The advocacy world is not in favor of the term "stigma" because it suggests that the social wrong is in the person. I would not throw away the word "stigma." I would argue with caution that people who are stigmatized have some social cues that signal to the rest of the world. Sometimes they are fairly obvious social cues, such as skin color or other body characteristics. Other people don't have an obvious mark but are labeled once they come out, and they tend to have all the problems with stigma. An example is gay people. We can't tell if someone is gay by looking at them, only if someone points the person out. Religious background, level of education, and history of being in prison are all things you can't tell unless the person comes out.
The NIH Consensus Conference on Hepatitis C	The National Institutes of Health convened the second Management of Hepatitis C Consensus DevelopmentConference on June 10, 2002 in Bethesda, Maryland. The first Management of Hepatitis C ConsensusConference was held in March 1997 that established the current approaches that are utilized in themanagement and care of Hepatitis C Virus.
OSHA Standards Interpretation and Compliance	It is important to note that the definition of "occupational exposure" comprises the reasonable anticipation that the employee will come into contact with these fluids during the course of performing his or her work duties

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