05/03/2005 01:30 PM Senate LABOR & COMMERCE

             HB 120-HEALTH CARE EMPLOYEE PROTECTION                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR SEEKINS announced HB 120 to be up for consideration.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE PEGGY WILSON, sponsor, explained  that HB 120 is a                                                               
housekeeping  bill  that  brings  Alaska statutes  in  line  with                                                               
federal statutes as  far as blood borne  pathogens are concerned.                                                               
Dentists  and  medical offices  with  less  than 25  people  were                                                               
exempted from the provisions when  the legislature passed its law                                                               
in  2000.  The federal  law  passed  without the  exemption.  Not                                                               
aligning our  statutes with federal  statutes would  prohibit the                                                               
state  from  getting  federal  grants.  The  bloodborne  pathogen                                                               
statutes try  to keep patients  and employees safe  from diseases                                                               
like hepatitis and AIDS. Medical  offices already do all they can                                                               
to protect themselves  and their patients and this  change is not                                                               
expected to impact anyone.                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
1:52:21 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR HUGGINS joined the committee.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
CAMILLE  SOLEIL, Executive  Director, Alaska  Nurses Association,                                                               
supported HB 120.                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
     It's clarification  of expectations for  compliance and                                                                    
     enables  safe practices  for our  nurses and  for their                                                                    
     patients. In  addition, if state  laws comply  with the                                                                    
     federal regulations,  state OSHA can then  enforce OSHA                                                                    
     standards  and any  OSHA-compliance  challenges can  be                                                                    
     heard locally,  which we  believe will  save businesses                                                                    
     money in the long run.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
GREY MITCHELL, Director, Division  of Labor Standards and Safety,                                                               
Department of Labor and  Workforce Development (DOLWD), supported                                                               
HB 120.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
1:54:08 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR BEN  STEVENS moved to  report HB 120 from  committee with                                                               
individual recommendations and attached  fiscal notes. There were                                                               
no objections and it was so ordered.