A group of federal lawmakers reintroduced legislation April 18 to curb violence against healthcare and social service workers.
The legislation would require the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to issue a workplace violence prevention standard requiring employers within the healthcare and social service sectors to develop and implement a workplace violence prevention plan, according to a section-by-section summary of the bill.
The standard would cover hospitals, residential treatment facilities, non-residential treatment settings, medical treatment or social service settings in correctional or detention facilities, psychiatric treatment facilities, freestanding emergency centers, and various other settings. It is not intended to cover individual physician offices or other medical providers outside of covered facilities or covered services.
In reintroducing the bill, Reps. Alma Adams and Joe Courtney, along with Sen. Tammy Baldwin, cited a fact sheet from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showing that healthcare and social service workers continue to face the highest rates of injuries caused by workplace violence of any industry.
"Healthcare and social service workers serve people from all walks of life. Unfortunately, they also face disproportionate rates of workplace violence," Ms. Adams, House Workforce Protections Subcommittee ranking member, said in a news release. "The Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Workers Act sends the message that 'enough is enough' — setting a national standard that forces employers to take seriously the health and safety of American workers, especially those working on the front lines to combat the COVID-19 pandemic."
The proposed legislation is supported by various organizations, including the American Nurses Association and National Nurses United.
More information about the proposal is available here.