[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 42 (Friday, March 5, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12949-12950]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-04515]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[Docket No. CDC-2020-0011]


Draft Infection Control in Healthcare Personnel: Epidemiology and 
Control of Selected Infections Transmitted Among Healthcare Personnel 
and Patients: Diphtheria, Group A Streptococcus, Meningococcal Disease, 
and Pertussis Sections; Re-Opening of Comment Period

AGENCY: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Department of 
Health and Human Services (DHHS).

ACTION: Notice with comment.

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SUMMARY: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in the 
Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), announces the re-
opening of a docket to obtain a public comment on the DRAFT Infection 
Control in Healthcare Personnel: Epidemiology and Control of Selected 
Infections Transmitted Among Healthcare Personnel and Patients: 
Diphtheria, Group A Streptococcus, Meningococcal Disease, and Pertussis 
Sections (``Draft Guideline'').

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before May 4, 2021.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CDC-2020-
0011, by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion, National 
Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention, Attn: Docket No. CDC-2020-0011, 
Infection Prevention and Control Guidelines, 1600 Clifton Rd. NE, 
Mailstop H16-2, Atlanta, Georgia, 30329.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and Docket Number. All relevant comments received will be posted 
without change to http://regulations.gov, including any personal 
information provided. For

[[Page 12950]]

access to the docket to read background documents or comments received, 
go to http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin Stone, M.A., Division of 
Healthcare Quality Promotion, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic 
Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 
Clifton Road NE, Mailstop H16-2, Atlanta, Georgia, 30329; Email: 
[email protected]; Telephone: (404) 639-4000.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Public Participation

    Interested persons or organizations are invited to participate by 
submitting written views, recommendations, and data related to the 
Draft Guideline.
    Please note that comments received, including attachments and other 
supporting materials, are part of the public record and are subject to 
public disclosure. Comments will be posted on https://www.regulations.gov. Therefore, do not include any information in your 
comment or supporting materials that you consider confidential or 
inappropriate for public disclosure. If you include your name, contact 
information, or other information that identifies you in the body of 
your comments, that information will be on public display. CDC will 
review all submissions and may choose to redact, or withhold, 
submissions containing private or proprietary information such as 
Social Security numbers, medical information, inappropriate language, 
or duplicate/near duplicate examples of a mass-mail campaign. CDC will 
carefully consider all comments submitted in preparation of the final 
Infection Control in Healthcare Personnel: Epidemiology and Control of 
Selected Infections Transmitted Among Healthcare Personnel and Patients 
and may revise the Draft Guideline as appropriate.

Background

    On February 26, 2020, CDC published a notice in the Federal 
Register requesting public comment on the `Draft Infection Control in 
Healthcare Personnel: Epidemiology and Control of Selected Infections 
Transmitted Among Healthcare Personnel and Patients: Diphtheria, Group 
A Streptococcus, Meningococcal Disease, and Pertussis Sections' (85 FR 
11084). Because the original notice was published in the early days of 
the COVID-19 pandemic, interested persons may not have had the 
opportunity to provide comment. For this reason, CDC has decided to re-
open the comment period to provide the public with additional time to 
review the draft document and provide comment.
    The Draft Guideline updates four sections of the Guideline for 
Infection Control in Health Care Personnel, 1998 (``1998 Guideline''), 
Part E: Epidemiology and Control of Selected Infections Transmitted 
Among Health Care Personnel and Patients, and their corresponding 
recommendations in Part II of the 1998 Guideline: ``4. Diphtheria;'' 
``9. Meningococcal Disease;'' ``12. Pertussis;'' and ``18. 
Streptococcus, group A infection.'' The updated recommendations in the 
Draft Guideline are intended for use by the leaders and staff of 
Occupational Health Services (OHS) to facilitate providing occupational 
infection prevention and control (IPC) services to healthcare personnel 
(HCP) for the management of exposed or infected HCP who may be 
contagious to others in the workplace.
    Since 2015, the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory 
Committee (HICPAC) has worked with national partners, academicians, 
public health professionals, healthcare providers, and other partners 
to develop this Draft Guideline as a recommendation for CDC to update 
sections of the 1998 Guideline. HICPAC includes representatives from 
public health, infectious diseases, regulatory and other federal 
agencies, professional societies, and other stakeholders.
    The updated draft recommendations in this Draft Guideline are 
informed by reviews of the 1998 Guideline; current CDC resources, 
guidance, and guidelines; and new resources and evidence, when 
available. This Draft Guideline and the updated final Guideline will 
not be a federal rule or regulation.

    Dated: March 1, 2021.
Sandra Cashman,
Executive Secretary, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2021-04515 Filed 3-4-21; 8:45 am]
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