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The EPA has issued a final rule that closes a regulatory loophole for asbestos by prohibiting discontinued uses of the substance by being re-introduced to the marketplace without an agency review. Restrictions on Discontinued Uses of Asbestos; Significant New Use Rule (SNUR) is effective June 24, 2019. The restricted significant new uses of asbestos (including as part of an article) is manufacturing (including importing) or processing for uses that are neither ongoing nor already prohibited under TSCA.

Areas recovering from destructive Cyclone Fani will have to endure dangerous temperatures as a heat wave builds across northern and eastern India. The heat already turned deadly with at least three deaths from sunstroke reported in Andhra Pradesh, according to OneIndia.

Cooperating with OSHA gets two employees fired – and their employer found guilty of retaliation; health experts want asbestos banned and the Association Health Plans program gets a defeat in court. These were among the top occupational safety and health stories featured on ISHN.com this week.

The American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP), the world’s oldest professional safety organization, is bestowing the honor of Fellow on four longtime members who have made significant contributions to the occupational safety and health profession.

Five years of legal wrangling following a workplace amputation – in which retaliation, intrigue and secret photos played a part – ended recently with a decision by a federal jury in Pennsylvania. The jury in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania found that Lloyd Industries Inc. and its owner, William P. Lloyd, unlawfully fired two employees because of their involvement in an OSHA investigation.

A North Carolina construction firm has received Safety and Health Achievement and Recognition Program (SHARP) accreditation for its work on a new health care facility. Brasfield & Gorrie was presented with a certificate of completion last month at the Mission Hospital for Advanced Medicine project, a 12-story, 615,000 square sq foot ft surgical tower with 220 patient beds, a newly expanded emergency department with 94 prep/recovery exam rooms, 10 operating rooms, 40 PACU bays, and a rooftop helipad.

Kevin Slates, a highly regarded scholar, educator and researcher in the occupational safety and health field and member of the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) for 14 years, is ASSP’s 2019 William E. Tarrants Outstanding Safety Educator.

The American Public Health Association (APHA) is urging Congress to urge support of the Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2019, a bill to protect the public from exposure to the toxic substance. “Asbestos is a potent carcinogen. There is no safe level of exposure to it."