The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released this Tight-Fitting Powered Air Purifying Respirators (PAPRs) Used During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic Memorandum, which provides temporary enforcement guidance for enforcing initial and annual fit-testing requirements of the Respiratory Protection standard, Section 1910.134 of Title 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations. It applies to tight fitting PAPRs, approved by NIOSH, when used for protection against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, by healthcare personnel or any other workers in high or very high exposure risk activities because of supply shortages of both disposable N95 filtering facepiece respirators and fit-testing supplies due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Visit OSHA’s coronavirus webpage frequently for updates. For further information about the coronavirus, please visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or contact ISRI Safety.