[Federal Register: February 13, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 30)]
[Notices]
[Page 8320-8321]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr13fe08-85]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
[Docket Number NIOSH-126]
Notice of Public Meeting and Availability for Public Comment
AGENCY: The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
(NIOSH) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
SUMMARY: The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
(NIOSH) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
announces the following meeting and request for public comment on the
Emergency Preparedness and Response Research Portfolio. The document
and instructions for submitting comments can be found at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/review/public/126/.
Comments may be given orally at
the following meeting, as well as provided to the NIOSH Docket Office.
Public Meeting Time and Date: 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., March 25, 2008.
Place: Hyatt Regency Crystal City, 2799 Jefferson Davis HWY,
Arlington, Virginia 22202.
Purpose of Meeting: NIOSH has developed strategic goals to address
important issues surrounding the health and safety of emergency
responders. The full list of goals can be accessed through the NIOSH
Web site at: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/programs/epr/goals.html.
The eight overarching goals are:
1. SAFETY CLIMATE: Improve the organization of emergency response
work to reduce exposure to risks and to enhance the health and safety
of emergency responders.
2. PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (PPE): Improve PPE assortment,
proper selection and wear, and decontamination.
3. ENGINEERING/TECHNOLOGICAL INTERVENTIONS AND CONTROLS: Improve
engineering controls, technology, and tools to minimize responders'
exposures to hazards associated with chemical, biological, radiation or
nuclear (CBRN), toxic industrial compound (TIC), and other hazardous
materials.
4. CHARACTERIZATION/ASSESSMENT OF POTENTIAL HAZARDS: Develop
methods to evaluate the spatial and temporal distribution of gases,
vapors, and aerosols, as well as liquids or particulates associated
with surface contamination.
5. SUBGROUP-SPECIFIC STRATEGIES: Improve subgroup awareness,
develop targeted messages, and expand subgroup-preferred channels.
6. SURVEILLANCE: Develop surveillance reporting systems to improve
emergency responder safety and health through the systematic
collection, analysis, and interpretation of exposure, hazard, injury,
and illness data.
7. ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY: Improve the understanding of
environmental microbiology of threat agents, including environmental
factors that influence the introduction, spread, and control of these
agents.
8. ENVIRONMENTAL AND BIOLOGICAL MONITORING OF TERRORISM AGENTS:
Improve the identification and characterization of terror agents to
reduce exposures to response and remediation workers.
Stakeholders are encouraged to review the strategic goals on the
NIOSH Web site (http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/programs/epr/goals.html ) in
order to prepare their comments/feedback around the following topics to
be discussed. Written responses can be submitted in person at the
meeting or by emailing nioshdocket@cdc.gov. Please reference Docket
Number NIOSH-126 in your response.
Give your opinion about the top three goals needed to
improve the safety and health of emergency responders.
Discuss why these are the top goals. Address any obstacles
in achieving these goals.
Talk about how research can help the nation address the
top goals that you have identified. Provide a couple of examples of
research ideas for each of your top goals identified.
Discuss opportunities you see on the horizon that could
lead to improvements in emergency responder safety and health.
Please include as much information as might be useful for
understanding the safety or health research priority you identify. Such
information could include characterization of the frequency and
severity with which the injury, illness, or hazardous exposure is
occurring and of the factors you believe might be causing the health or
safety issue. Input is also requested on the types of research that you
believe might make a difference and which partners (e.g., specific
industry associations, labor organizations, research organizations,
government agencies) should be involved in informing research efforts
and solutions.
Status: The public meeting is open to everyone, including all
workers, professional societies, organized labor, employers,
researchers, health professionals, government officials, and elected
officials. The public meeting
[[Page 8321]]
will address priorities for emergency preparedness and response
research during both morning and afternoon public comment periods.
Participants are invited to speak for 5 minutes about the discussion
topics listed above. Participants may register to speak during either
the morning or afternoon session, though they are encouraged to stay
for both sessions.
Broad participation is desired. All participants are requested to
register for the free meeting by e-mailing nioshdocket@cdc.gov or on
site the day of the meeting, space permitting. Participants wishing to
speak are encouraged to register early. This meeting is open to the
public, limited only by the space available.
Background: The mission of the NIOSH Emergency Preparedness and
Response (EPR) Program portfolio is to advance research and
collaborations to protect the health and safety of emergency response
providers and recovery workers by preventing diseases, injuries, and
fatalities in anticipation of and during responses to natural and man-
made disasters and novel emergent events.
The EPR Program research portfolio cuts across the eight sectors
that are the focus of the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA).
NORA is a partnership program to stimulate innovative research and
improved workplace practices. Unveiled in 1996, NORA has become a
research framework for NIOSH and the nation. Diverse parties
collaborate to identify the most critical issues in workplace safety
and health.
Public Comment Period: Those unable to attend the public meeting
may submit input to the NIOSH Docket Office within 60 days after the
date of publication of this notice in the Federal Register. Reference
NIOSH Docket 126 in comments.
Contact Person for Technical Information: Dr. Renee Funk, EPR
Portfolio Coordinator at (404) 498-2499 or e-mail rfunk@cdc.gov.
Comments may be e-mailed to nioshdocket@cdc.gov or sent via postal
mail to: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, NIOSH Docket-126,
Robert A. Taft Laboratories (C-34), 4676 Columbia Parkway, Cincinnati,
OH 45226.
Additional Information: A limited number of rooms have been
reserved in the same hotel as the meeting for participants who require
lodging for the night of March 24th. Please contact the hotel
reservations desk for rooms under ``NIOSH Town Hall Meeting'' by the
March 3rd deadline at (703) 418-7233.
Reference: More information about NIOSH/EPR can be found on the
NIOSH Web page at: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/programs/epr/.
Dated: February 5, 2008.
James D. Seligman,
Chief Information Officer, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
[FR Doc. E8-2743 Filed 2-12-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-19-P