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Showing posts for: COVID-19

Apr 05 2024
COVID-19Safety and Health

CDC relaxes COVID-19 isolation guidelines for the public

On March 1, 2024, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) updated its COVID-19 isolation guidelines, removing the recommendation to isolate for 5 days, and instead recommending people treat COVID-19 (coronavirus) like any other respiratory illness. Even though many states have rescinded workplace COVID-19 requirements (and have also pared down previous isolation guidance for the general…

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Oct 05 2023
COVID-19Safety and HealthWashington

WASHINGTON: Permanent TWH rules released

Starting November 1, 2023, operators of temporary worker housing (TWH) must comply with new rules issued by Washington’s Departments of Labor & Industries (L&I) and Health (DOH) that primarily address communicable diseases such as COVID-19. As we previously reported, L&I and DOH indicated in January that they planned to create permanent rules when their last…

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May 18 2023
COVID-19Hiring

Temporary Form I-9 remote inspection finally expires August 30, 2023

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced the end of its temporary relaxation of the standards for physically inspecting a new worker’s employment eligibility documents when completing the Form I-9. The relaxed standard officially expires on July 31, 2023, but DHS is allowing a 30-day grace period to come into compliance. This means employers…

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May 04 2023
COVID-19Safety and Health

Federal contractor vaccine mandate to end effective May 12, 2023

On May 1, 2023, the White House announced that the COVID-19 (coronavirus) vaccine mandate and related safety protocols for federal contractors will end at 12:01 a.m. on May 12, 2023. This is the same time that the national COVID-19 public health emergency will officially be over. A notice on the Safer Federal Workforce web page for…

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Apr 20 2023
COVID-19Leave LawsSafety and Health

WASHINGTON: End of COVID-19 National Emergency ends HELSA duties

On April 10, 2023, most COVID-19 (coronavirus) obligations for Washington employers were extinguished when President Biden signed legislation (H.J. Res. 7) that immediately terminated the national emergency related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Washington’s Health Emergency Labor Standards Act (HELSA) required employers to (1) report outbreaks to Washington’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH); (2)…

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Mar 16 2023
COVID-19CaliforniaOregon

Healthcare masking to end April 3, 2023, in CA, OR, and WA

Wearing a mask in healthcare settings will no longer be required in California, Oregon, or Washington as of April 3, 2023. The announcements from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), Oregon Health Authority (OHA), and the Washington Department of Health (DOH) all say that masks are still recommended, and healthcare providers are free to…

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Feb 16 2023
COVID-19Employee Benefits

COVID-19 benefits plan deadline extensions to end July 10, 2023

The Biden Administration recently announced that the COVID-19 national emergency and public health emergency will end on May 11, 2023, which means that starting 60 days afterward (July 10, 2023), various employee health plans will no longer be required to extend certain deadlines for plan participants and beneficiaries. This includes extensions to the usual deadlines…

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Feb 02 2023
COVID-19Safety and HealthWashington

WASHINGTON: COVID-19 temporary worker housing rules evolve

On January 14, 2023, the Washington Department of Labor & Industries (L&I)’s COVID-19 (coronavirus) emergency rules that had been in place for temporary worker housing (TWH) in the agriculture industry expired and were not renewed. While this means that the remaining emergency restrictions have been lifted, agricultural employers providing TWH must continue taking precautions to…

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Nov 03 2022
COVID-19DisabilityLeave Laws

WASHINGTON: Public health emergency ends; some duties remain

Governor Jay Inslee ended the COVID-19 public health emergency for the state of Washington on October 31, 2022, but employers still have some obligations under state law. As we previously reported, the continuing requirements for COVID-19 (coronavirus) stem from Washington’s Health Emergency Labor Standards Act (HELSA) and from an ongoing obligation to provide a workplace…

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Oct 06 2022
COVID-19Safety and HealthWashington

WASHINGTON: COVID-19 state of emergency to end October 31, 2022

Governor Jay Inslee has announced that he will end Washington’s declared public health emergency (PHE) due to COVID-19 (coronavirus) on October 31, 2022. As he previously announced, 12 health care related orders will end on October 27. The remaining COVID-19 emergency proclamations, including the state of emergency, will be rescinded at the end of the…

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Jul 21 2022
COVID-19DisabilityHarassment & Discrimination

EEOC updates guidance on COVID-19 screening for employers

On July 12, 2022, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) updated its technical assistance guidance regarding COVID-19 (coronavirus) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). These FAQs scale back the agency’s approval of mandatory COVID-19 screening measures and clarify several other COVID-19 related issues. Viral screening tests and “business necessity”: The EEOC now says…

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Jul 07 2022
COVID-19CaliforniaSafety and Health

CALIFORNIA: CDPH updates definition of “close contact”

On June 8, 2022, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) changed the definition of a COVID-19 “close contact” to someone sharing the same “indoor airspace” (instead of the prior standard of being within 6 feet) for a cumulative total of at least 15 minutes over a 24-hour period during the infectious period of a…

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