SAN FRANCISCO & LOS ANGELES & SAN DIEGO– Biocom California, the association representing the California life science industry, today announced that it has published a guide tailored to life science companies with recommendations on how to safely return to the workplace as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve. “The Path Forward: Biocom California’s Return to Work Guide for the Life Science Industry” follows up Biocom California’s first guide, released in May, with all-new content updated to include vaccination information, testing best practices, and updated CDC guidelines throughout. The guide is designed to assist small and medium-sized life science companies by providing industry best practices for preparing their facilities to meet workplace, laboratory, and manufacturing safety guidelines.
“As we turn our attention towards 2021 and a new set of challenges and opportunities, we at Biocom California continue to place a heavy focus on the health and safety of our members,” said Rick Fultz, Sr. Vice President and Chief Business Officer, Biocom California. “After all, if the critical workers in our industry are compromised, who is going to discover the testing, treatments, and vaccines needed to fight this global pandemic? While the path forward is still somewhat unknown, we are encouraged by the collaboration, innovation, and dedication we witness every day in this great industry.”
In this updated guide, Biocom California has included exclusive testing offers for Biocom California members across various modalities. Most notably, a new section on vaccines was introduced, including distribution estimates and guidelines on how to combine testing with vaccine deployment in the days ahead. The guide also includes new content throughout that is reflective of updated regulatory guidelines that have been implemented in the past six months as we learned more about COVID-19.
The guide was informed by the same Return to Work Task Force comprised of life science industry professionals that Biocom California assembled to inform the first guide in May – a group that includes life science leaders with expertise in environmental health and safety, human resources, operations and communications. Note that this guide is designed to supplement, not replace, any mandated guidance from local governments and other public health agencies and officials and synthesizes the myriad of guidance documents available from state and federal agencies such as the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and others.
As with the first edition of the guide, Biocom California has made this publication available to the general public with hopes that it can help the life science industry, as well as others, return to work in a safe manner so they can continue innovating solutions that improve the human condition worldwide.
