New York State Extends New York HERO Act COVID-19 Designation Until March 17, 2022
On February 15, 2022, New York State’s Commissioner of Health extended the declaration that COVID-19 is a “highly contagious communicable disease that presents a serious risk of harm to public health.” The original declaration, set to expire on February 15, 2022, has now been extended to March 17, 2022.
The extension, made effective by an order by the New York State Commissioner of Health, continues the designation under the New York HERO Act.This means that New York employers must continue to implement their safety plans, including daily screening of employees working onsite. The New York State Department of Labor recently issued an updated model safety plan with recommendations, as opposed to requirements, regarding usage of masks indoors.
There is some confusion due to the recent lifting of a statewide mask mandate. With the extension of the declaration, employers still need to maintain the requirement for employees to wear face coverings.
PRINTING United Alliance seeks to keep the industry updated on workplace requirements related to COVID-19 workplace safety requirements. These changes are rapidly evolving, and if you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Marci Kinter, mkinter@printing.org, Gary Jones, gjones@printing.org, or Adriane Harrison, aharrison@printing.org.
Gary A. Jones is the director of environmental, health and safety (EHS) affairs at PRINTING United Alliance in Fairfax, VA. His primary responsibility is to monitor and analyze EHS regulatory activities at all domestic and some international government levels. He provides representation on behalf of the printing and specialty graphic imaging industry. In doing so, Mr. Jones works closely with the federal and state-level Environmental Protection Agencies (EPA), Occupational Safety and Health Agency (OSHA), Department of Transportation (DOT), and other agencies. He also provides membership assistance on EHS compliance and sustainability programs through a variety of approaches including responding to inquiries, presentations, writing, and consulting services.
Mr. Jones is also supporting PRINTING United Alliance’s efforts for the Sustainable Green Printing Partnership (SGP). SGP is dedicated to assisting printing operations respond to the customer demand for sustainable printing.
He holds a BS in biology from LaRoche College and an MS in chemistry from the University of Pittsburgh.
