Denfensive stock in a world recession( NMT Group ) why?

Hello all,

On October 3, 2000, the House passed H.R. 5178, Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act, by voice vote. On October 26, 2000, H.R. 5178 passed the Senate. On November 6, 2000, the President signed this measure into law. Public Law 106-430.

Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act
H.R. 5178

Summary

H.R. 5178 directs employers to consider and, where appropriate, use medical devices that reduce the risk of needlesticks and other injuries from sharp medical devices (sharps). Employers with employees who may be exposed to bloodborne pathogens are required to use safer medical devices only where such devices are appropriate, effective and commercially available.



The bill amends the Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, 29 C.F.R. §1910.1030 -- one of the health and safety regulations implemented through the Occupational Safety and Health Act. The bill does not amend the Act itself. The bill directs the Secretary of Labor to make the changes to the standard exactly as prescribed by Congress within six months of enactment of this bill and to publish the changes in the Federal Register. The changes themselves go into effect 90 days after publication in the Federal Register. The bill does not allow for any discretion by the Secretary of Labor or by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in implementing the changes to the Bloodborne Pathogens Standard.


The bill requires employers to consider using "safer medical devices" and to document that consideration and use in their Exposure Control Plan. The Bloodborne Pathogens Standard currently requires employers to use engineering controls and work practices to reduce the risk of sharps injuries. The bill adds "safer medical devices, such as sharps with engineered sharps injury protections and needleless systems" as a form of engineering control. The bill requires employers to use safer medical devices only where the devices are appropriate, commercially available and effective at reducing or eliminating sharps injuries. In considering and selecting safer medical devices, employers would be required to solicit input from the frontline health care workers who would actually use the devices and to document that input in their Exposure Control Plan.


The bill also requires employers to record sharps injuries in a sharps injury log. The log would record the type of device used, an explanation of the incident, and where the injury occurred. The information contained in the log would help employers refine their Exposure Control Plan and help further reduce the number of sharps injuries. Employers who are exempt from maintaining OSHA 200 logs, such as employers with 10 or fewer employees, would be likewise exempt from maintaining a sharps injury log.

Budgie.