Why
you should use a professional biorecovery service
Property owners and managers have to deal with the emotional and legal
implications of biohazards. The second emotional trauma inflicted by
cleaning a tragic scene will often last much longer than the initial shock
of discovery. For a family member, friend or employee who attempts to
recover a scene, this trauma can become completely emotionally overwhelming
and lead to serious mental consequences in addition to the health hazards
associated with blood, tissue and decomposition products. If a person is not
mentally prepared and also provisioned with proper training and equipment,
the biorecovery will not be performed promptly and completely. This
individual risks spreading the contamination and exposing others to
pathogens.
Employing a professional biorecovery
company also avoids a significant exposure to a workers compensation claim
and reduces the liability for a lawsuit. Given the publics' knowledge and
fears of bloodborne disease, it is a wise decision to deflect problems and
questions from tenants or employees regarding proper cleaning and
disinfection of a scene. The costs of a lawsuit or workmen's compensation
claim for an improper cleaning are many times greater than the costs of a
proper recovery. The majority of scene recovery costs are covered under most
insurance policies.
Employers can avoid the legal liabilities
associated with violation of the OSHA Bloodborne Pathogens Rules and State
Sanitary Code. OSHA requires that a company Bloodborne Pathogen Exposure
Control Plan be in place if ONE employee can reasonably be expected to be
exposed ONCE PER YEAR. Federal Regulation 29CFRI910.1030 states that no
employee can be placed in a position to be exposed to blood spills without
first:
- Receiving bloodborne pathogen (BBP)
training.
- Having a written BBP exposure control
plan.
- Having been provided appropriate
personal protective equipment.
- Having been offered the Hepatitis B
vaccine with exposure evaluation and medical follow-up.
- Being provided with a method to remove
and properly store the bio-hazardous waste in properly marked containers
for disposal at an approved site.
Only after these five steps have been met can an employee
be required by his or her employer to clean a bio-hazardous/crime scene. The
costs of meeting these requirements can become very high especially if there
is a high employee turnover rate.
The penalties imposed by government agencies will be
almost certainly dwarfed by the costs of any lawsuit filed by the aggrieved
employee or tenant. OSHA is very strict and responds rapidly to reported
violations. OSHA has imposed fines ranging from $7,000 to $70,000 for
serious and willful violations of the Bloodborne Pathogen Training Standard.
If the employee has been exposed or injured during the attempted cleanup of
bloodborne pathogens, the employer is responsible for:
- Medical follow-up (required initial exposure testing
and examination, three additional follow-up procedures) Average cost for
these medical visits is now about $1,600.
- Reporting the violation and the remedy efforts to
various Federal and State Agencies.
- Maintenance of records for duration of employee's
employment plus 30 years.
- Costs of lost production or replacement worker during
testing periods.
If the collected body fluids/tissues are not properly
destroyed, the Sanitary Code has provisions for the imposition of fines of
up to $25,000 and imprisonment for up to two years for violation of
105CMR480.000. "Storage and Disposal of Infectious or Physically Dangerous
Medical or Biological Waste."
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