Yesterday, the California Department of Public Health issued a new State Public Health Order that further clarifies the definition of “close contact.” “Close contact” is now defined as follows:
- In indoor spaces 400,000 or fewer cubic feet per floor (such as home, clinic waiting room, airplane), a close contact is defined as sharing the same indoor airspace for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period (for example, three separate 5-minute exposures) during an infected person’s infectious period.
- In large indoor spaces greater than 400,000 cubic feet per floor (such as open-floor-plan offices, warehouses, large retail stores, manufacturing, or food processing facilities), a close contact is defined as being within 6 feet of the infected person for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period during the infected person’s infectious period.
- Spaces that are separated by floor-to-ceiling walls (e.g., offices, suites, rooms, waiting areas, bathrooms, or break or eating areas that are separated by floor-to-ceiling walls) are considered distinct indoor airspaces.
Because this new definition is included in a State Public Health Officer Order, it applies to the ETS.
This means that determining who is a close contact is now dependent on the size of an employer’s indoor space. For indoor spaces of 400,000 cubic feet or fewer, a close contact is someone who shares the same indoor airspace with a COVID-19 case for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period during the COVID-19 case’s infectious period. For indoor airspaces of more than 400,000 cubic feet, a close contact is someone who is within six feet of a COVID-19 case for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period during the COVID-19 case’s infectious period.
On a related note, the Association has continued to monitor, and respond to, efforts by the California Occupational Health and Safety Standards Board to promulgate a non-emergency COVID-19 prevention standard, which would in effect, modify and extend the ETS. This afternoon, the Cal/OSHA released a revised proposed non-emergency COVID-19 prevention standard, which will be heard by the California Occupational Health and Safety Standards Board on October 31, 2022.