Cal/OSHA Updates: AB 1805 Changes Definition of Serious Injury or Illness

Author, Emily Marasso, Media Communications Assistant, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

For reporting purposes, California Assembly Bill 1805 (AB 1805) outlines new definitions for what is considered a serious injury or illness. These changes were made to bring California’s laws more in line with Federal OSHA reporting standards. The changes include:

• Employers must now report all inpatient hospitalizations (regardless of the length of stay), unless the inpatient hospitalization is for medial observation or diagnostic testing.

• The phrase “loss of any member of the body” has been changed to “amputation” or the “loss of an eye” as needing to be reported.

• Workplace violence resulting in a serious injury, illness, or death that falls under the Penal Code are now considered reportable.

• Serious injury or death caused by an accident occuring in a construction zone on a public street or highway must now be reported.

• A “serious exposure” is now “any exposure of an employee to hazardous substances when the exposure occurs as a result of an incident, accident, emergency, or exposure over time and is in a degree or amount sufficient to create a realistic possibility death or physical harm in the future could result from the actual hazard created by the exposure.”

As of January 1, 2020, the changes to AB 1805 are in effect. Make sure your human resources, safety manger, and supervisors are aware of these changes and start the New Year off on the right foot.

New Law Changes Which Injuries Must Be Reported

Author, Daniel Frazee, Executive Vice President, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

A new California law, Assembly Bill 1805 (AB 1805), changes when employers are required to report serious workplace injuries to the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA). The law now broadens the scope of what will be classified as a serious illness, injury or exposure. Many believe this change will increase the number of workplace accidents that will have to be reported in 2020.

The definition of “serious injury or illness” has, for many years, been defined as an injury or illness that requires inpatient hospitalization for more than 24 hours of treatment, or if any employee suffers a “loss of member” or serious disfigurement. The definition has excluded hospitalizations for medical observation. Regulations also excluded from reporting requirements any serious injury caused by a criminal assault and battery or a vehicle accident on a public road or highway.

AB 1805 aligns California’s rules more closely with Federal OSHA regulations for reporting. More specifically:

Rules

The following will need to be reported to Cal/OSHA:

• Any inpatient hospitalization (even less than 24 hours),

• An inpatient hospitalization is required for something “other than medical observation or diagnostic testing,”

• Employers must report any “amputation” (even if the tip of a finger is cut off) to Cal/OSHA. This replaces the terminology “loss of member;”

• The loss of an eye,

• Serious injuries or deaths caused by a criminal assault and battery,

• The exclusion for injuries from auto accidents on a public street or highway remains in effect.  However, accidents that occur in a construction zone must now be reported.

Compliance (related directly to serious injuries and illnesses or fatalities)

In order to say in compliance:

• The report must be made within 8 hours of the employer knowing, or with “diligent inquiry” should have known, about the serious injury/illness.

• The report must be made by PHONE to the nearest Cal/OSHA district office.

For more details on how these changes may impact your company’s IIPP, please contact me at (619) 937-0172.