Reporting Employee COVID-19 Hospitalizations and Deaths to OSHA

Posted on February 17, 2021 by Jonathan Lips

A recent Star Tribune story on Minnesota OSHA inspections raised questions from a few LeadingAge Minnesota members. The story was not specific to health care or to long-term care, but it did note that MNOSHA had fined a nursing home for not reporting that one of its employees had been hospitalized with COVID-19.

Under OSHA guidance, if an employee is hospitalized due to COVID-19, and if that hospitalization occurs within 24 hours of an exposure to SARS-CoV-2 at work, then the employer is required to report that hospitalization to OSHA. There is a similar rule requiring employers to report to OSHA information about deaths from work-related COVID-19 cases.

To assist members in reviewing these requirements, we have developed a fact sheet on Reporting Employee COVID-19 Hospitalizations and Deaths to OSHA. Please contact Jonathan Lips with questions.