Occupational Safety and Health Data Collection and Injury Prevention Work Group

  • September 17, 2008:

Minutes:

Occupational Safety and Health Data Collection and Injury Prevention Work Group

Minutes

Bureau of Labor Standards Central Maine Commerce Center Frances Perkins Conference Room A September 17, 2008

Present: William Peabody, Chair (Maine Department of Labor); Peter Doran (American Lung Association of Maine); Jeff Levesque (Workers' Compensation Board); Kim Lim (Maine Department of Labor); Al May (Maine Center for Disease Control); John Rioux (Maine Department of Labor); and Leslie Walleigh (Maine Center for Disease Control).

Staff Present: Terry Hathaway.

Call to Order: Bill Peabody called the meeting to order at 10:11 a.m.

August 20, 2008 Minutes. Peter Doran made a motion to accept the August 20th minutes as written. Jeff Levesque seconded the motion. Vote, unanimous.

Defending the M.O. Mandate. Bill stated that the Wilson case has forced the issue regarding the filing of M.O. (Medical Only). The filing of M.O. impacts the statute of limitations. He added that the Workers? Compensation Summit is next week, Sunday through Tuesday. Monday morning, there will be a panel discussion of M.O. and Bill is sitting on the panel. Mandatory filing of M.O. would allow improvement of occupational health and safety and prevention. John added that when Safety asks for profiles, the Research Division does profiles based on lost time cases; M.O. would offer more cases to look at to determine prevention. There was further discussion regarding the definition of a M.O.

At the October 15th meeting, Jeff will present a program on ?An Employers? Guide to Workers? Compensation in Maine?.

2008 Topic Updates.

M.O.?s (Medical Only). This topic was covered under defending Medical Only.

? Self-insured Study. Bill stated that he has not contacted Brian regarding this study.

? MHDO (Maine Health Data Organization). Tabled per Leslie Walleigh.

? Small Business Survey. John announced that a follow-up survey has been sent to 98 small businesses who had answered ?no? to web-based training and gave contact information . Kim Lim will be handling the survey for those employers who prefer to complete the follow-up survey via telephone.

? Detailed Review of Prevention Activities. Tabled per Bill.

Other. Leslie inquired if there was a role for MORA (Maine Occupational Research Agenda) to push BOSH (Board of Occupational Safety and Health) for more stringent standards. Bill responded that there was a potential as the Board would like to see more data. He brought up that the Board held a public hearing on new public safety diving rules. The Board often promulgates rules by creating an ad hoc committee, which is chaired by a Board member, and is comprised of interested parties. Proposed rules now have to be posted on the agency?s web site as well as the Secretary of State?s website.

Bill announced that the Governor has requested the Occupational Safety and Loan Program, which is a coordination of FAME (Finance Authority of Maine) and the BLS (Bureau of Labor Standards), offering small business loans. This was formerly the Commission on Safety and Health in the Maine Workplace.

Also, Bill added that SafetyWorks! now has a trailer, which allows SafetyWorks! to go on-site to small businesses.

Bill will be on a University of Maine radio program discussing teen worker safety issues.

Next Meeting. The next meeting of the Occupational Safety and Health Data Collection and Injury Prevention Work Group is scheduled for Wednesday, October 15, 2008, 10:00 ? 11:30 a.m., Frances Perkins Conference Room A, Central Maine Commerce Center.

Jeff will do a presentation on Workers? Compensation.

Bill will provide an update on the Sugarloaf presentation.

Bill also stated that on September 30th, the Workers? Compensation Board meeting has a discussion of M.O.

Adjournment ? Bill Peabody adjourned the meeting at 11:41 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Terry M. Hathaway, Recording Secretary