14.074/7:001/5 OSHA INJURY AND ILLNESS HEARING BEFORE A SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES NINETY-EIGHTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION JUNE 20, 1984 Printed for the use of the Committee on Government Operations COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS DON FUQUA, Florida JACK BROOKS, Texas, Chairman JOHN CONYERS, JR., Michigan STEPHEN L. NEAL, North Carolina ROBERT E. WISE, JR., West Virginia BARBARA BOXER, California BUDDY MACKAY, Florida MEL LEVINE, California MAJOR R. OWENS, New York EDOLPHUS TOWNS, New York JOHN M. SPRATT, JR., South Carolina JOE KOLTER, Pennsylvania BEN ERDREICH, Alabama GERALD D. KLECZKA, Wisconsin FRANK HORTON, New York WILLIAM F. CLINGER, JR., Pennsylvania JUDD GREGG, New Hampshire DAN BURTON, Indiana JOHN R. McKERNAN, JR., Maine ALFRED A. (AL) MCCANDLESS, California DAN SCHAEFER, Colorado CONTENTS Frank, Hon. Barney, a Representative in Congress from the State of Massachusetts, and chairman, Manpower and Housing Subcommittee: Frumin, Eric, Chairman, Labor Research Advisory Committee on Occupa- Kronebusch, Karl, Office of Technology Assessment in the health pro- gram, accompanied by Dr. Michael Gough, project director....... Millar, Dr. J. Donald, Director, National Institute for Occupational Safety Norwood, Janet L., Commissioner, Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. De- Seminario, Margaret, associate director, department of occupational Tyson, Patrick, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, accompanied by Frank Frodyma, Director, Office of Program Evaluation, and Jackie De Mesme, Legislative Ana- Letters, statement, etc., submitted for the record by- Frank, Hon. Barney, a Representative in Congress from the State of Massachusetts, and chairman, Manpower and Housing Subcommittee: Page 179 3 162 Study by Mary Jane Bolle, Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress, entitled "Effectiveness of the Occupational Safety and Health Act: Data and Measurement Problems" Frumin, Eric, Chairman, Labor Research Advisory Committee on Occupa- tional Safety and Health Statistics, Bureau of Labor Statistics: Information concerning occupational injury and illness reporting Prepared statement. 185-199 Kronebusch, Karl, Office of Technology Assessment in the health pro- 30-45 Seminario, Margaret, associate director, department of occupational safety and health and social security, American Federation of Labor/ Congress of Industrial Organization: Prepared statement. Tyson, Patrick, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Occupational Safety and OSHA INJURY AND ILLNESS INFORMATION SYSTEM WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20, 1984 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, MANPOWER AND HOUSING SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS, Washington, DC. The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:30 a.m., in room 2247, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Barney Frank (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Present: Representatives Barney Frank, Major R. Owens, and John R. McKernan, Jr. Also present: Stuart E. Weisberg, staff director; Thomas S. Crane, legislative assistant, June D. Saxton, clerk; and Nan Elwood, minority professional staff, Committee on Government Operations. OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN FRANK Mr. FRANK. Good morning. The hearing of the Manpower and Housing Subcommittee of the Committee on Government Operations will come to order. I should point out that the House is going into session a little early this morning. We may be interrupted once for a vote-it shouldn't be more often than that because there is going to be some lengthy debate over the first amendment and I think we should be able to finish this with only one interruption. The subject of today's hearing really grew out of some earlier hearings we had with respect to our jurisdiction over OSHA and the primary focus today-and I know other things were talked about as well and will come up-but the primary focus that the subcommittee has had and that Mr. McKernan and I have discussed among ourselves, as well as in the hearing, is the adequacy of our reporting of occupational illness. Obviously, OSHA has responsibility for illness and injury, and it's become clear to us, as it undoubtedly already was to people in the field, that for obvious reasons, injury is an easier concept to deal with. The intellectual problems and methodological problems involved in trying to keep track of occupationally caused or affected illnesses is obviously very difficult. It does seem to me that we are not doing as much as we ought to be doing in that area. I want to say at the outset, this is not one of the hearings when it is my view that it is the particular fault of this or that administration or this or that agency. I think we have a problem here (1) |