OSHA notice of proposed rulemaking for new respirator test protocol

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration last week published a notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register for a new fit-testing protocol — the Abbreviated Bitrex Qualitative Fit-Testing (ABQLFT) protocol — under Appendix A of OSHA’s Respiratory Protection standard. The agency is accepting public comments until Feb. 25, 2008.“This proposed rule will add a new fit-test method that has a shorter exercise duration than the current methods,” said Edwin G. Foulke, Jr., assistant secretary of labor for OSHA. “This method will give employers additional flexibility in selecting procedures for conducting fit-testing.”The proposed rule would add the ABQLFT as an alternative to the four existing OSHA-approved qualitative fit-test protocols and would apply to employers in general industry, shipyard employment and the construction industry.Click here for more information.

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