Guidance

MIN 618 (M+F) Amendment 3 COVID-19 guidance on the reporting of occupational diseases

Updated 8 April 2022

This guidance was withdrawn on 26 July 2022

MIN 618 Amendment 3 is no longer current. Please refer to MSN 1850 Amendment 1.

Summary

This notice gives guidance on the reporting of diagnosed COVID-19 cases among seafarers on board ships, where there is reasonable evidence that it was caused by exposure at work and on how to decide whether a case of COVID-19 is reportable.

1. Introduction

1.1 The employer of a seafarer on a UK ship must report to MCA when they are notified that a seafarer who works (or has worked) on a ship is suffering (or did suffer) from an occupational disease (The Merchant Shipping and Fishing Vessels (Health and Safety at Work) Regulations 1997, regulation 11A).

1.2 Reportable occupational diseases are specified in MSN 1850 (M) Annex 1. They include

‘Any disease attributed to an occupational exposure to a biological agent.’

2. COVID-19 cases

2.1 In respect of COVID-19, an employer is only required to make a report when a seafarer has been infected with COVID-19 through;

• deliberately working with the virus, such as in a laboratory
• being incidentally exposed to the virus

2.2 Incidental exposure can occur when working in environments where people are known to have COVID-19, for example a medical practitioner, nurse or seafarer who is diagnosed with COVID-19 after treating or caring for someone with COVID-19 as part of their work on the ship, or supporting activities such as cleaning.

2.3 The following should be reported:

• a seafarer has been diagnosed as having COVID-19 attributed to an occupational exposure to COVID-19, through either deliberately working with the virus or being incidentally exposed to it.

• a seafarer dies as a result of occupational exposure to COVID-19 through either deliberately working with the virus or being incidentally exposed to it.

2.4 In such cases, the disease is reported as a case of disease as a result of exposure to a biological agent.

2.5 In accordance with MSN 1850(M), a case is reportable only if the employer has received a written diagnosis of a specified disease from a medical practitioner. However, unlike with usual diagnosis of occupational disease, many cases of COVID-19 are confirmed without a medical practitioner’s written diagnosis, for example, on the basis of laboratory test results. Therefore MCA will not require those results to be confirmed by a medical practitioner before a case of COVID-19 resulting from work is reported. Any official confirmation of COVID-19 infection such as from a public testing body or a positive lateral flow test (LFT) should be considered as being equivalent to a medical practitioner’s diagnosis.

3. What not to report

3.1 The following should not be reported as cases of occupational disease:

• cases of disease or deaths of members of the public, such as passengers, from COVID-19

• cases where an employee has infected another employee with COVID-19 through general transmission in the workplace

• cases where a member of the public has infected an employee with COVID-19 through general transmission in the workplace, unless infection is likely to have occurred from working in an environment with a person known to have COVID-19, for example in a medical setting.

4. Making a report

4.1 A report must be made on form MSF 4159.

4.2 The completed form should be emailed to mlc@mcga.gov.uk

More Information

Seafarer Services – Seafarer Safety and Health
Maritime and Coastguard Agency
Bay 2/17
Spring Place
105 Commercial Road
Southampton
SO15 1EG

Telephone: +44 (0) 203 8172498

E-mail: mlc@mcga.gov.uk

Website: www.gov.uk/mca

General enquiries: infoline@mcga.gov.uk

Please note that all addresses and telephone numbers are correct at time of publishing.

Published: April 2022