SARS-Coronaviruses and Highly Pathogenic Influenza Viruses
Section 11: Medical costs and leave
A system to manage medical costs for the evaluation and treatment of employees with symptoms requiring follow-up (as per approved medical protocols) must be developed by the institution in the context of its overall benefits package. This system may include a combination of paid leave benefits, workers compensation and health insurance benefit coverage dependent on the particular circumstances of the incident and on the employee's health insurance plan.
Prompt and accurate reporting of events or symptoms will ensure containment of disease and protection of the public health. To facilitate and encourage prompt reporting, the employer will assure that initial costs involved in this risk evaluation will be covered with no out-of-pocket costs to the employee.
A system must also be developed to provide for required routine medical surveillance such as serum banking and medical clearance for respirator use. This should be provided on work time and at no charge to the employee.
A document describing the NYSDOH-specific approaches to Medical Costs and Leave issues can be obtained upon request.
Section 12: Administrative considerations
12.1: Protocol Review
12.1.1 This protocol will be reviewed by the responsible scientists, Wadsworth administrative staff, Wadsworth Biosafety Officer, the Bureau of Communicable Disease Control, and the NYS DOH Occupational Health and Safety Director annually and upon all significant applications.
12.1.2 The Risk Assessment Group will be convened after each application but no less than semi-annually to discuss approaches and create written recommendations for implementation or changes to the protocol.
12.2 Training
12.2.1 Initial training and annual retraining sessions on the practices described in this protocol will be required and arranged by the Principal Investigator and the Wadsworth Center Safety and Security office.