Health and Safety
Executive / Commission
Infections at work and GMOs
1 COSHH 2002 came into force on 21 November 2002. You can obtain a new version of the Regulations and Approved Code of Practice (ACoP) by contacting HSE Books (at www.hsebooks.co.uk or on 01787 881165).
2 As COSHH was being updated to implement the Chemical Agents Directive (CAD), the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) also took the opportunity to update the biological agents provisions of COSHH. HSC did this because research showed that there was a lack of awareness of when exposure to biological agents has to be considered by employers, especially when their employees are not intentionally working with biological agents.
3 The main aim of the changes to the biological agents provisions in COSHH is: to make it clear to employers they do have duties under COSHH to protect their workers against biological agents; and to clearly separate general duties relating to all hazardous substances from those only relevant to people working intentionally with biological agents. This has been achieved by moving general requirements from Schedule 3 (which detailed the duties relating to work with biological agents) into the main Regulations (e.g. assessment, prevention and control). Schedule 3 now contains the more specific requirements relating to biological agents (e.g. working with biological agents in laboratories, animal rooms and industrial processes, and notification requirements relating to biological agents).
4 There are other important changes to the biological agents provisions in COSHH that you need to consider. These include:
5 There have been quite a few changes to COSHH, which you should familiarise yourself with. If you have any questions about the changes, once you have considered the new Regulations and the ACoP, contact the HSE Infoline on 0845 345 0055. Regular updates on Biological Agents and COSHH can be found in the Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens' Biological Agents Bulletins (www.hse.gov.uk/biosafety/information.htm).