Bloodborne Pathogens Standard

OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, 29 CFR 1910.1030, requires employers to protect workers who can reasonably be expected to contact blood or other potentially infectious materials on the job. It targets pathogens such as hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which can spread through needlesticks, cuts and splashes to the eyes, nose or mouth.

The standard applies far beyond hospitals. Any employer with workers who have occupational exposure, including designated first aid responders, housekeepers, laundry staff, tattoo artists and security officers, must have a written exposure control plan, provide the hepatitis B vaccine, train employees every year and keep specific records.

What Is the Bloodborne Pathogens Standard?

OSHA first published 29 CFR 1910.1030 in December 1991. It was revised after Congress passed the Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act in November 2000. The revised standard was published on January 18, 2001 and took effect on April 18, 2001, adding requirements to evaluate safer medical devices, involve frontline workers in selecting them and keep a sharps injury log.

It sits in Subpart Z of OSHA's general industry standards, Toxic and Hazardous Substances. Under paragraph (a), it applies to all occupational exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials.

Key definitions

• Occupational exposure: reasonably anticipated skin, eye, mucous membrane or parenteral contact with blood or other potentially infectious materials that may result from the performance of an employee's duties.
• Other potentially infectious materials (OPIM): includes certain human body fluids such as semen and cerebrospinal fluid, any body fluid visibly contaminated with blood, unfixed human tissue or organs, and certain HIV- or HBV-containing cultures and materials.
• Engineering controls: controls that isolate or remove the hazard, such as sharps disposal containers, self-sheathing needles and safer medical devices like sharps with engineered sharps injury protections and needleless systems.
• Universal precautions: an infection control approach that treats all human blood and certain body fluids as if known to be infectious.

Who Must Comply?

The standard applies to every employer with employees who have occupational exposure, regardless of size. Exposure is judged by job duties and determined without regard to the use of personal protective equipment. Common covered roles include:

• Doctors, nurses, dental staff, phlebotomists and lab workers
• Employees designated to give first aid as part of their duties
• Housekeeping, janitorial and laundry workers who handle contaminated items
• Emergency responders, law enforcement and corrections officers

Paragraph (e) adds extra requirements for HIV and HBV research laboratories and production facilities.

State Plan states must enforce a standard at least as effective as federal OSHA's. Many State Plans also cover state and local government workers who are not covered by federal OSHA.

Key Requirements

Exposure control plan

Under 1910.1030(c)(1), each employer with an exposed employee must have a written exposure control plan designed to eliminate or minimize exposure. The plan must include the exposure determination, the schedule and methods for putting the standard into practice, and the procedure for evaluating exposure incidents. It must be accessible to employees and reviewed and updated at least annually, and whenever new or modified tasks affect exposure.

The annual review must reflect changes in technology that reduce exposure and document consideration and use of safer medical devices. Employers must also solicit input from non-managerial employees responsible for direct patient care who may be exposed to contaminated sharps injuries, and document that input in the plan.

Exposure determination

Paragraph (c)(2) requires a list of job classifications in which all employees have occupational exposure, a list of classifications in which some employees do, and the tasks and procedures that cause exposure in the second group.

Methods of compliance

• Universal precautions must be observed.
• Engineering and work practice controls come first. PPE is used where exposure remains.
• Handwashing facilities must be readily accessible, and hands must be washed as soon as feasible after removing gloves or contacting blood or OPIM.
• Sharps: contaminated needles must not be bent, recapped or removed unless no alternative is feasible or a specific medical procedure requires it, and then only by a mechanical device or one-handed technique. Contaminated sharps go into closable, puncture-resistant, leakproof, labeled containers that are kept upright and not overfilled.
• PPE such as gloves, gowns and eye protection must be provided at no cost to the employee, along with its cleaning, laundering, repair and replacement.
• Housekeeping and laundry: contaminated surfaces must be decontaminated, and contaminated laundry must be handled as little as possible, bagged where used and handled with gloves.

Hepatitis B vaccination and post-exposure follow-up

Under (f)(2), the hepatitis B vaccine must be made available after required training and within 10 working days of initial assignment to every employee with occupational exposure, at no cost. Exceptions apply when the employee already completed the series, is immune or has a medical contraindication. Employees who decline must sign the declination statement in Appendix A, and can change their mind later.

After an exposure incident, paragraph (f)(3) requires the employer to immediately make available a confidential medical evaluation and follow-up. It includes documenting the route and circumstances of exposure, identifying and testing the source individual where feasible and permitted, testing the exposed employee's blood with consent, post-exposure prophylaxis when medically indicated, counseling and evaluation of reported illnesses.

Labels and signs

Paragraph (g)(1) requires biohazard warning labels, fluorescent orange or orange-red with contrasting lettering, on containers of regulated waste, refrigerators and freezers holding blood or OPIM, and other containers used to store or ship them. Red bags or red containers may substitute for labels.

Training and Recordkeeping

Annual training

Under (g)(2), training must be provided at no cost and during working hours, at the time of initial assignment and at least annually after that, within one year of the previous training. Additional training is required when tasks or procedures change. Training must cover the elements in (g)(2)(vii), including how bloodborne diseases spread, the exposure control plan, control methods and PPE, the hepatitis B vaccine, what to do in an emergency and after an exposure, and signs and labels. It must also give an opportunity for interactive questions and answers with a person knowledgeable about the training content.

Records and retention

• Medical records (h)(1): kept confidential for each employee with occupational exposure, for the duration of employment plus 30 years.
• Training records (h)(2): training dates, a summary of the content, names and qualifications of trainers, and names and job titles of attendees, kept for 3 years from the date of training.
• Sharps injury log (h)(5): employers required to keep an OSHA 300 Log under Part 1904 must also keep a sharps injury log of percutaneous injuries from contaminated sharps. Each entry records the type and brand of device, the department or work area and how the incident happened, while protecting confidentiality. The log is kept for the period in 1904.33, which is five years following the end of the calendar year it covers.

Common Violations and Penalties

• No written exposure control plan, or one that has not been reviewed in the past year
• Hepatitis B vaccine not offered within 10 working days, or missing declination forms
• Training that lapsed past one year or lacked live questions and answers
• Overfilled or unlabeled sharps containers, and recapping of contaminated needles
• Missing sharps injury log entries

OSHA lists current maximum penalties on its penalties page. For penalties assessed after January 15, 2026, the posted maximum is $16,550 per serious violation and $165,514 per willful or repeated violation.

How to Comply: Step by Step

1. Determine exposure. List job classifications and tasks with occupational exposure, without considering PPE.
2. Write the exposure control plan. Include the exposure determination, controls, vaccination, post-exposure procedures, training and recordkeeping.
3. Select safer devices. Evaluate engineered sharps with frontline worker input, and document it.
4. Provide controls and PPE. Stock sharps containers, gloves, eye protection and handwashing supplies where exposure occurs.
5. Offer the hepatitis B vaccine within 10 working days of assignment, and file declinations.
6. Train at assignment and annually. Track due dates so no one passes the one-year mark.
7. Set up post-exposure response. Arrange a healthcare provider, an incident reporting route and confidential follow-up.
8. Keep records and review yearly. Maintain medical, training and sharps log records for the required periods and update the plan at least annually.

How SMS360 Helps

SMS360's Training Management module helps you meet the annual training requirement. Assign bloodborne pathogens training by job role, keep training records with dates, trainers and attendees, and get reminders before anyone reaches the one-year deadline.

When an exposure incident occurs, it can be reported, investigated and followed up with tracked corrective actions, and dashboards help you confirm the plan review, training and follow-up are on schedule.

Frequently Asked Questions

How often is bloodborne pathogens training required?

Training is required at the time of initial assignment to tasks with occupational exposure and at least annually after that. Annual training must happen within one year of the employee's previous training. Additional training is required when new or changed tasks or procedures affect exposure.

Do employers have to pay for the hepatitis B vaccine?

Yes. The vaccine and vaccination series must be made available at no cost to employees with occupational exposure, within 10 working days of initial assignment and after training. Employees may decline by signing the declination statement in Appendix A and can still receive the vaccine later if they change their mind.

Are first aid responders covered by the standard?

Employees designated to give first aid as part of their job duties have occupational exposure and are covered. Someone who helps a coworker as a Good Samaritan, without being designated to do so, generally is not. If you designate first aid responders, include them in the exposure control plan and training.

How long must bloodborne pathogens records be kept?

Medical records for exposed employees must be kept for the duration of employment plus 30 years. Training records must be kept for 3 years from the training date. The sharps injury log is kept for five years following the end of the calendar year it covers, the same period as the OSHA 300 Log.