California Code of Regulations › Title 3 - Food and Agriculture › Division 6 - Pesticides and Pest Control Operations › Chapter 3 - Pest Control Operations › Subchapter 3 - Pesticide Worker Safety › Article 2 - General Safety Requirements › Section 6728 - Medical Supervision

Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 28, July 12, 2024
(a)
					 Whenever an employee mixes, loads, or applies a pesticide with the signal word
					 "DANGER" or "WARNING" that contains an organophosphate or carbamate, for the
					 commercial or research production of an agricultural plant commodity, the
					 employer shall maintain use records that identify the employee, name of the
					 pesticide, and the date of use. The original or copies of documents otherwise
					 required to be maintained by this chapter may be used to meet the requirements
					 of this section provided they contain the information required by this
					 section.
(b) Each employer who has
					 an employee that regularly handles pesticides specified in (a) shall have a
					 written agreement signed by a physician registered as a medical supervisor with
					 the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment pursuant to Health and
					 Safety Code section
					 105206,
					 that includes the names and addresses of both the physician providing the
					 medical supervision and the employer responsible for the employees, stating
					 that the physician has agreed to provide medical supervision and that the
					 physician possesses a copy of, and is aware of the contents of the document
					 "Medical Supervision of Pesticide Workers-Guidelines for Physicians" (available
					 from the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment). A copy of this
					 agreement shall be given to the commissioner by the employer no later than when
					 an employee begins to regularly handle pesticides specified in (a).
(c) The employer's responsibilities for
					 medical supervision for employees regularly handling pesticides specified in
					 (a) shall include the following:
(1) All
					 covered employees shall have baseline red cell and plasma cholinesterase
					 determinations. Baseline must be established after a period of at least 30 days
					 during which the employee has had no exposure to organophosphate or carbamate
					 pesticides. Baseline values shall be verified every two years. For new
					 employees, the medical supervisor may accept previously established baseline
					 values if they are obtained in accordance with these regulations by the same
					 laboratory methodology and are acceptable to the laboratory which will analyze
					 the new employee's blood samples.
(2)
(A) The
					 employer shall ensure that each employee, not previously under medical
					 supervision associated with that employer, has red cell and plasma
					 cholinesterase determinations within three working days after the conclusion of
					 each 30-day period in which pesticides specified in (a) are regularly
					 handled.
(B) After three tests at
					 30-day intervals, further periodic monitoring shall be at intervals specified
					 in writing by the medical supervisor except for verification of baseline as
					 specified in (1).
(C) Where the
					 medical supervisor has made no written recommendation for continued periodic
					 monitoring, the testing interval shall be 60 days.
(3) The employer shall keep a record of the
					 agreement to provide medical supervision, use records, all recommendations
					 received from the medical supervisor and all results of cholinesterase tests
					 required to be made on his employees by this section or by the medical
					 supervisor. Records required by this section shall be maintained for three
					 years and shall be available for inspection by the employee, the director,
					 commissioner, county health official, or state health official.
(4) The employer shall follow the
					 recommendations of the medical supervisor concerning matters of occupational
					 health.
(5) The employer shall post
					 the name, address, and telephone number of the medical supervisor in a
					 prominent place at the locale where the employee usually starts the workday or,
					 if there is no locale where the employee usually starts the workday, at each
					 worksite or in each work vehicle.