Michigan became the first state to lower acceptable blood lead levels for workers recently, taking an important step towards keeping workers safe from lead exposure at the workplace. The new standard replaced a decades-old standard, according to a news release from the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA).

The diagnosis and treatment of lead exposure is based on the blood lead level (BLL), measured in micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood (μg/dL). The old MIOSHA rule allowed workers to reach BLLs of up to 60 μg/dL before they were required to be removed from a worksite and could return after their BLL was measured below 40 μg/dL. The new rule requires employees to be removed after their BLL reaches 30 μg/dL and workers cannot return to work involving lead exposure until their BLL is below 15 μg/dL.

Demolition and remodeling activities were among the activities cited by MIOSHA as sources of lead exposure for adults. According to MIOSHA, the previous standards at a federal level were based on scientific information that is more than 35 years old. While Michigan is the first state to lower its standards, other state OSHA organizations as well as the federal organization plan to review lead standards in the new year.

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