O-91 Assessing the influence of occupational cancer hazard evaluations on U.S. federal and state regulatory actions

• Published in: Occupational and environmental medicine (London, England) England), 2023-03, Vol.80 (Suppl 1), p.A39-A39
• Main Authors: Mehta, Suril S, Morin, Isabelle, Osborn, Kimberly, Lemeris, Courtney R, Conti, Michael, Lunn, Ruth M
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abstracts; Cancer; Carcinogens; Communication; Consumer products; Decision making; Economic sectors; Economics; Emergency response; Emission standards; Emissions; Emissions control; Exposure limits; Federal regulation; Hazard assessment; Hazard identification; Occupational exposure; Occupational health; Policies; Public health; Regulation; Silica; Solvents; State regulations; Toxicants; Trichloroethylene
• ISSN: 1351-0711; 1470-7926
• DOI: 10.1136/OEM-2023-EPICOH.92

IntroductionCancer hazard identification is critical to inform decision-making on occupational exposures, but the influence of these evaluations on occupationally protective regulatory policies is poorly understood. Our study examined whether listing a substance as a human carcinogen in the Report on Carcinogens (RoC) may prompt regulatory action, leading to health and economic benefits.MethodsWe systematically searched U.S. Federal and state databases for regulations mentioning the RoC from 1995–2021. For each regulation, we extracted information on the regulated carcinogen(s), regulatory agency, regulation purpose, economic sector exposure source, and public health costs and benefits. We used Tableau to visualize findings and created interactive dashboards to allow users to explore specific details of regulations citing RoC.ResultsOf the 147 regulations citing the RoC, 30 actions (23 Federal, seven state) pertained to occupational exposures. These include protecting workers by communicating workplace cancer hazards (N=12), setting/revising exposure limits for specific occupational carcinogens or toxicants (N=12), and restricting trade/use (N=4). Other actions mitigated exposure to both workers and the public by restricting use (e.g., benzidine dyes), reducing emissions from building/consumer products (e.g., formaldehyde), and communicating hazards. Two federal agencies enable compensation to individuals of specific occupations (e.g., military and first responders) who developed certain cancer types due to being exposed to a RoC listed carcinogen. Five Federal actions quantified yearly monetized benefits for worker-related regulations, ranging from $9 million for restricting trichloroethylene use, to more than $8 billion for reducing exposure to respirable-size crystalline silica. Moreover, a hazard communication action applying to any RoC-listed substance is associated with annualized benefits of over $800 million.ConclusionOver 25 years, RoC cancer hazard assessments have informed dozens of U.S. occupation-based regulatory policies. Expansion of our approach to other hazard assessments may ultimately improve our understanding of the utility and impact of scientific conclusions on policymaking.