how long does an employer have to report a work related in patient hospitalization to osha?

by Allen Kling 9 min read

1904.39 - Occupational Safety and Health Administration

22 hours ago Within twenty-four (24) hours after the in-patient hospitalization of one or more employees or an employee's amputation or an employee's loss of an eye, as a result of a work-related incident, you must report the in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye to OSHA. >> Go To The Portal


within 24 hours

When do employers have to report in-patient hospitalizations to OSHA?

The regulation requires employers to report to OSHA any in-patient hospitalization of an employee resulting from a work-related incident if the hospitalization occurs within 24 hours of that work-related incident.

When do employers have to report an employee fatality to OSHA?

The regulation also requires employers to report to OSHA any employee fatality resulting from a work-related incident if the death occurs within 30 days of that work-related incident.

How long do you have to report an injury to OSHA?

Report a Fatality or Severe Injury All employers are required to notify OSHA when an employee is killed on the job or suffers a work-related hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye. A fatality must be reported within 8 hours. An in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or eye loss must be reported within 24 hours.

How does OSHA define in-patient hospitalization?

OSHA defines in-patient hospitalization as a formal admission to the in-patient service of a hospital or clinic for care or treatment. Treatment in an Emergency Room only is not reportable.

How many days do employees have to report to OSHA if they feel they have been punished for exercising their safety and health rights?

30 daysWorkers have a right to seek safety and health on the job without fear of punishment. This right is spelled out in Section 11(c) of the OSH Act. Workers have 30 days to contact OSHA if they feel they have been punished for exercising their safety and health rights.

How long does an OSHA notice of violation need to be posted in the workplace -- as close to the point of violation as possible?

3 working daysPosting Requirements When you receive an OSHA Notice, you must post it (or a copy of it) at or near the place where each violation occurred to make employees aware of the hazards to which they may be exposed. The OSHA Notice must remain posted for 3 working days or until the hazard is abated, whichever is longer.

Who must report to OSHA any workplace incident that results in a fatality or the hospitalization of three or more employees?

EmployersEmployers are required to report, within 8 hours after their occurrence, incidents which result in a worker fatality or multiple hospitalizations.

How do I report a hospitalization to OSHA?

By telephone or in person to the OSHA Area Office that is nearest to the site of the incident. By telephone to the OSHA toll-free central telephone number, 1-800-321-OSHA (1-800-321-6742). By electronic submission using the reporting application located on OSHA's public Web site at www.osha.gov.

How long must employer post citations?

Posting requirements – The citation must be prominently posted by the employer at or near each place of violation referred to and in a place where it is readily seen by all affected employees—and must remain posted for a period of three working days or until the condition is abated, whichever is longer.

How long does OSHA have to issue citations?

within six monthsOSHA must generally issue any citations within six months of the occurrence of any violations. Citations are supposed to be mailed to employee representatives no later than one day after the citation is sent to the employer. Citations can also be malted to any employee upon request.

How soon after a work-related fatality occurs Does a report need to be made in person or by telephone to OSHA?

All employers are required to notify OSHA when an employee is killed on the job or suffers a work-related hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye. A fatality must be reported within 8 hours. An in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or eye loss must be reported within 24 hours.

What does OSHA require employers to post for 3 days?

OSHA requires employers to post a citation near the site of the violation for 3 days for employers who receive citations for violations.

What is the information you must give OSHA in the event of a fatality or hospitalization of three employees?

Employers reporting a fatality, in-patient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye to OSHA must report the following information: Establishment name. Location of the work-related incident. Time of the work-related incident.

Is an ER visit OSHA recordable?

Not Recordable The case is not OSHA recordable, even if the First Aid treatment is administered at a health clinic, emergency room, hospital, or other medical treatment facility.

What are the basic requirements of OSHA for employers?

Under the OSH law, employers have a responsibility to provide a safe workplace. This is a short summary of key employer responsibilities: Provide a workplace free from serious recognized hazards and comply with standards, rules and regulations issued under the OSH Act.

What is the OSHA general duty clause 1910?

The OSHA General Duty Clause, Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, requires that each employer furnish to each of its employees a workplace that is free from recognized hazards that are causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm.

How long does it take to report a fatality to OSHA?

A fatality must be reported within 8 hours.

What is amputation in medical terms?

An amputation is the traumatic loss of all or part of a limb or other external body part. This would include fingertip amputations with or without bone loss; medical amputations resulting from irreparable damage; and amputations of body parts that have since been reattached.

How to report an OSHA incident?

To Make a Report. Call the nearest OSHA office. Call the OSHA 24-hour hotline at 1-800-321-6742 (OSHA). Report online. Be prepared to supply: Business name; names of employees affected; location and time of the incident, brief description of the incident; contact person and phone number.

Is an emergency room reportable?

OSHA defines in-patient hospitalization as a formal admission to the in-patient service of a hospital or clinic for care or treatment. Treatment in an Emergency Room only is not reportable.

Do employers have to report an accident?

Employers do not have to report an event if it: Resulted from a motor vehicle accident on a public street or highway (except in a construction work zone); Occurred on a commercial or public transportation system, such as airplane or bus; Involved hospitalization for diagnostic testing or observation only. ×.

Can you report an eye loss in the area office?

No, if the Area Office is closed, you must report the fatality, in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye using the 800 number (1-800-321-6742).

Do you have to report an inpatient hospitalization to OSHA?

Another exception. If the inpatient hospitalization only involved observation or diagnostic testing with no actual treatment or care, you do not have to report it to OSHA. I hope this helps to further your knowledge on when to report injuries to OSHA.

Do you have to report an eye injury to OSHA?

OSHA says that if the in-patient hospitalization, loss of an eye, or amputation occurs 24 hours after the work-related incident, it does not need to be reported to OSHA but must still be recorded on the OSHA 300 log, if your company is already required to keep such injury and illness records.

What is the OSHA rule for fatal injury?

1904.39, OSHA’s Fatality and Serious Injury Reporting Rule, which requires employers to report to OSHA certain in-patient hospitalizations, may seem straightforward, but there are several nuances employers routinely miss that affect the determination whether a hospitalization is actually reportable to OSHA.

What is the factor that determines if a hospitalization is reportable?

Another factor in determining whether and when a hospitalization becomes reportable to OSHA, is determining whether the underlying injury is work-related. Under OSHA’s reporting rule, which is just a sub-section of OSHA’s broader Injury and Illness Recordkeeping regulation, only work-related fatalities, amputations and in-patient hospitalizations ...

How many OSHA citations are serious?

Moreover, at least 85% of OSHA citations are characterized as Serious, Repeat or Willful, and OSHA’s civil penalty authority has skyrocketed by 80% in the past two years. Accordingly, it is critical that employers understand the intricacies of what makes an employee’s visit to the hospital a reportable event, and conversely, what does not, ...

Is a seizure hospitalization a reportable work related hospitalization?

Conversely, if the employer learns after three days of investigation, including industrial hygiene testing and consulting with the employee’s treating physician, that something in the work environment contributed in any way to her seizure, the hospitalization would be a reportable work-related hospitalization.

Does OSHA require hospitalizations?

The new rule, however, requires a report to OSHA for the hospitalization of a single employee, which has opened the door to thousands more incidents that must be evaluated for possible reporting. Although the current regulation has increased the number of employee hospitalizations that are being reported to OSHA, ...

Is hospitalization reportable to OSHA?

Not only must an employee be admitted to the in-patient service for an injury to be reportable, the hospitalization is only reportable to OSHA if medical treatment is provided after the admission. Major medical care provided to an injured worker only in the emergency setting is not reportable.

Is MRI reportable if an employee loses consciousness?

For instance, if an employee loses consciousness at work and is admitted to the in-patient service of the hospital for an MRI to diagnose what caused the loss of consciousness and for observation for additional symptoms, but no medical treatment is provided, that hospitalization is not reportable.

How long does it take for an OSHA employee to die?

For a work-related fatality resulting from COVID-19, employers must report the fatality to OSHA only if the employee dies within 30 days of an exposure to COVID-19 at work. These time frames determine whether the fatality or in-patient hospitalization is reportable to OSHA, or in other words, constitutes a “reportable event.”.

How long does it take for an employer to report a fatality to OSHA?

The regulation also requires employers to report to OSHA any employee fatality resulting from a work-related incident if the death occurs within 30 days of that work-related incident. Since the coronavirus began to affect employees in the United States, employers have faced difficulty in determining whether work-related hospitalizations ...

What is an incident OSHA?

OSHA’s new FAQs clarify that for cases of COVID-19, “the term ‘incident’” means “an exposure to SARS-CoV-2 in the workplace.”. Therefore, employers must report an employee hospitalization due to COVID-19 only if the employee is admitted to the hospital for in-patient treatment within 24 hours of an exposure to COVID-19 at work.

What is work relatedness?

Determination of work-relatedness. Basic requirement. You must consider an injury or illness to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing injury or illness. Work-relatedness is presumed for injuries and illnesses resulting ...

What is an injury or illness?

The injury or illness involves signs or symptoms that surface at work but result solely from a non-work-related event or exposure that occurs outside the work environment.

What is an injury or illness that is solely the result of personal grooming, self medication for a non-

The injury or illness is solely the result of personal grooming, self medication for a non-work-related condition, or is intentionally self-inflicted. The injury or illness is caused by a motor vehicle accident and occurs on a company parking lot or company access road while the employee is commuting to or from work.

What are some examples of work related activities?

Examples of such activities include travel to and from customer contacts, conducting job tasks, and entertaining or being entertained to transact, discuss, or promote business (work-related entertainment includes only entertainment activities being engaged in at the direction of the employer).

Is an injury or illness a recordable injury?

Yes, an injury or illness occurring in the work environment that falls under one of the following exceptions is not work-related, and therefore is not recordable. You are not required to record injuries and illnesses if . . . At the time of the injury or illness, the employee was present in the work environment as a member ...

Is travel work related?

Injuries and illnesses that occur while an employee is on travel status are work-related if, at the time of the injury or illness, the employee was engaged in work activities "in the interest of the employer.". Examples of such activities include travel to and from customer contacts, conducting job tasks, and entertaining or being entertained ...

Is the flu a mental illness?

The illness is the common cold or flu (Note: contagious diseases such as tuberculosis, brucellosis, hepatitis A, or plague are considered work-related if the employee is infected at work). (ix) The illness is a mental illness.