Heat-Related Illness Prevention and Management Plan — Maryland

1. Purpose and scope

This plan applies to work by [Company name], indoors or outdoors, when the heat index reaches 80°F or above. It is available to employees and to MOSH on request, in a language employees understand.

Exposure of 15 consecutive minutes or less in any hour, and buildings or vehicles where ventilation keeps the heat index below 80°F, are outside the rule.

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2. Responsibilities

[Plan administrator (name and title)] is responsible for this plan, phone [Plan administrator phone]. The plan administrator makes sure supplies are available, supervisors are trained, and the plan is reviewed every year before the hot season.

Supervisors and foremen who carry out this plan on site: [Supervisors and foremen who carry out this plan on site]

Every worker is expected to drink water often, take cool-down rest when needed, watch out for co-workers, and report symptoms right away.

3. Monitoring the heat index

The heat index is monitored throughout the shift using direct measurement, National Weather Service data, or the OSHA-NIOSH Heat Safety Tool app. Inside buildings without ventilation, it is measured directly. [Who checks the forecast and heat index, and how]

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4. Drinking water and hydration

Free, potable water is available at all times, as close as practical to the work, with at least 32 ounces per hour for each employee. Workers are given the opportunity and encouraged to drink it.

[How drinking water is provided]

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5. Shade and cooling

Shade is as close as practical to the work, open on at least three sides, protected from other heat sources, and large enough for everyone using it to sit normally and remove PPE. Where shade is not feasible or safe, an equally effective cooling measure or a ventilated indoor space is used.

[How shade or cooling is provided]

Other cooling measures and their maintenance: [Other cooling measures, if any, and how they are maintained]

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6. Acclimatization schedule

Employees newly exposed to heat, or returning after 7 or more consecutive days away, follow a gradual schedule over 5 to 14 days. Heat exposure increases by no more than 20% per day. Supervisors consider workload, clothing and PPE, and personal risk factors. Monitoring: [How workers are monitored during acclimatization and high heat]

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7. High-heat procedures and rest breaks (heat index 90°F and above)

When the heat index reaches 90°F, supervisors set a work/rest schedule adjusted for conditions, workload and clothing, and never discourage breaks. At a minimum:

• Heat index from 90°F up to 100°F: at least 10 minutes of rest every 2 hours worked.
• Heat index of 100°F or above: at least 15 minutes of rest every hour.
• Rest is taken in the shade or a cool area, and workers are monitored by phone or radio, a buddy system, or other effective means.
• Workers report heat illness symptoms in themselves or a co-worker to a supervisor immediately. No one is disciplined for reporting symptoms or for taking a cool-down rest.

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8. Emergency response

Workers reach a supervisor this way: [How workers reach a supervisor during the shift]

Designated to call 911: [Who is designated to call 911]. Anyone who sees a worker with signs of severe heat illness calls 911 right away.

Directions for emergency responders: [How you give emergency responders directions to each job site]

• Signs of heat stroke (confusion, slurred speech, fainting, seizures, hot skin, no sweating): call 911, move the worker to shade, cool them with water, ice or wet cloths, and stay with them until help arrives.
• Signs of heat exhaustion (heavy sweating, headache, dizziness, nausea, cramps): stop work, rest in shade, drink water, loosen clothing, and keep watching; call 911 if it gets worse or doesn't improve.
• Never leave a sick worker alone and never send them home without offering first aid or emergency medical services.

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9. Training and records

Employees and supervisors are trained before their first heat exposure, every year before the hot season, and right after any heat-related illness incident. Training covers working conditions, personal risk factors, acclimatization, water and rest, the types of heat illness and first aid, reporting, and this plan. Training records — names, dates and a summary of what was covered — are kept for one year.

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