[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 80 (Wednesday, April 26, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25407-25408]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-08804]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[Docket No. CDC-2023-0025]


Draft Infection Control in Healthcare Personnel: Epidemiology and 
Control of Selected Infections Transmitted Among Healthcare Personnel 
and Patients: Pregnant Healthcare Personnel Section

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

ACTION: Notice with comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in the 
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announces the opening of 
a docket to obtain comment on the Draft Infection Control in Healthcare 
Personnel: Epidemiology and Control of Selected Infections Transmitted 
Among Healthcare Personnel and Patients: Pregnant Healthcare Personnel 
Section (``Draft Guideline: Pregnant Healthcare Personnel Section''). 
The Draft Guideline: Pregnant Healthcare Personnel Section updates the 
Guideline for infection control in health care personnel, 1998 (``1998 
Guideline''), Part F: Pregnant Personnel, and its corresponding 
recommendations in Part II of the 1998 Guideline. The updated 
recommendation in the Draft Guideline: Pregnant Healthcare Personnel 
Section is intended for use by the leaders and staff of Occupational 
Health Services. This updated recommendation will help facilitate the 
provision of occupational infection prevention and control

[[Page 25408]]

services to healthcare personnel (HCP) who are pregnant or intend to 
become pregnant.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before June 26, 2023.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CDC-2023-
0025 by either of the methods listed below. Do not submit comments by 
email. CDC does not accept comments by email.
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory 
Committee (HICPAC) Secretariat, Division of Healthcare Quality 
Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton 
Road NE, Mailstop H16-3, Atlanta, Georgia 30329, Attn: Docket Number 
CDC-2023-0025
    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 access to the docket to read background 
documents or comments received, go to http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laura Wells, Division of Healthcare 
Quality Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 
Clifton Road NE, Mailstop H16-2, Atlanta, Georgia 30329; 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: Pregnant Healthcare Personnel Section.
    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. Do not 
submit comments by email. CDC does not accept comments by email.

Background

    The Draft Guideline: Pregnant Healthcare Personnel Section, located 
in the ``Supporting & Related Material'' tab of the docket, updates the 
Guideline for infection control in health care personnel, 1998, Part F: 
Pregnant Personnel, and its corresponding recommendations in Part II of 
the 1998 Guideline. The 1998 Guideline provided information and 
recommendations for Occupational Health Services (OHS) of healthcare 
facilities and systems on the prevention of transmission of infectious 
diseases among healthcare personnel (HCP) and patients and can be found 
at https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/11563.
    In this document, ``OHS'' is used synonymously with ``Employee 
Health,'' ``Employee Health Services,'' ``Employee Health and Safety,'' 
``Occupational Health,'' and other such programs. OHS refers to the 
group, department, or program that addresses many aspects of health and 
safety in the workplace for HCP, including the provision of clinical 
services for work-related injuries, exposures, and illnesses. In 
healthcare settings, OHS addresses workplace hazards including 
communicable diseases; slips, trips, and falls; patient handling 
injuries; chemical exposures; HCP burnout; and workplace violence.
    This Draft Guideline: Pregnant Healthcare Personnel Section update 
is part of a larger guideline update: Infection Control in Healthcare 
Personnel. Part I, Infrastructure and Routine Practices for 
Occupational Infection Prevention and Control Services (2019) and the 
Diphtheria, Group A Streptococcus, Meningococcal Disease, Pertussis, 
and Rabies sections of Part II, Epidemiology and Control of Selected 
Infections Transmitted Among Healthcare Personnel and Patients (2022) 
are complete and have been published on the CDC Infection Control 
Guideline website: https://www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/guidelines/healthcare-personnel/index.html. The Draft Guideline: Pregnant 
Healthcare Personnel Section, once finalized, is intended for use by 
the leaders and staff of OHS to guide the provision of occupational 
infection prevention and control services to HCP who are pregnant or 
intend to become pregnant.
    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 Infection Control in Healthcare Personnel (https://www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/guidelines/healthcare-personnel/index.html) as a segmental update of the 1998 Guideline. HICPAC is a 
federal advisory committee appointed to provide advice and guidance to 
HHS and CDC regarding the practice of infection control and strategies 
for surveillance, prevention, and control of healthcare-associated 
infections, antimicrobial resistance, and related events in United 
States healthcare settings. HICPAC includes representatives from public 
health, infectious diseases, regulatory and other federal agencies, 
professional societies, and other stakeholders. Draft Guideline: 
Pregnant Healthcare Personnel Section, once finalized, will be the next 
section to be posted to the Infection Control in Healthcare Personnel 
website.
    The updated draft recommendation in Draft Guideline: Pregnant 
Healthcare Personnel Section is informed by reviews of the 1998 
Guideline; CDC resources (e.g., CDC infection control website), 
guidance, and guidelines as noted more specifically in the draft 
document; and new scientific evidence, when available. CDC is seeking 
comments on the Draft Guideline: Pregnant Healthcare Personnel Section. 
Please provide references to new evidence and justification to support 
any suggested revisions or additions. This Draft Guideline: Pregnant 
Healthcare Personnel Section is not a federal rule or regulation.

Tiffany Brown,
Executive Secretary, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2023-08804 Filed 4-25-23; 8:45 am]
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