The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has a proposed rule, first published on July 1, 2025, to remove some medical evaluation requirements from its Respiratory Protection standard, 29 CFR 1910.134. On June 3, 2026, OSHA published a notice reopening the rulemaking record, with written comments due on or before July 6, 2026; that reopened comment period has closed. As of November 7, 2026, our search of the Federal Register found no final rule, so the current medical evaluation requirements still apply.
What the current rule requires
Under current 29 CFR 1910.134(e)(1), "The employer shall provide a medical evaluation to determine the employee's ability to use a respirator, before the employee is fit tested or required to use the respirator in the workplace."
What OSHA proposes
The 2025 proposal's summary states: "OSHA is proposing to remove some medical evaluation requirements in the Respiratory Protection Rule for certain types of respirators. This proposed change would only impact filtering facepiece respirators and loose-fitting powered air-purifying respirators."
The proposed text would keep the general rule as (e)(1)(i) and add (e)(1)(ii): "The medical evaluation requirements of this paragraph do not apply to the following: (A) The required use of filtering facepiece respirators. (B) The required use of loose-fitting powered air-purifying respirators."
Points from the proposal's explanation:
- OSHA writes that it "does not question the need for medical evaluations for other types of respirators," but that "the literature does not support their efficacy when using FFRs and loose-fitting PAPRs in environments that are not immediately dangerous to life or health."
- Paragraphs (e)(2) through (e)(7) "would not be impacted by the proposed exemption," and where a medical evaluation is required, "the employer must comply with all requirements of paragraph (e)."
- OSHA asked for comment on whether paragraph (e)(7), which requires additional medical evaluations in some situations, "should remain applicable to FFR and loose-fitting PAPR use."
- OSHA notes that the change would also revise the construction and maritime standards that apply 1910.134, including 29 CFR 1926.103 for construction.
Why the comment period was reopened
The June 3, 2026 notice explains that OSHA consulted its Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health (ACCSH) on March 31, 2026. On April 1, the committee approved this recommendation by a vote of five to four: "ACCSH recommends that OSHA not proceed with the proposal to remove the medical evaluation requirements and continue to look for best practices and provide those to employers." OSHA then reopened the record "to provide an additional 30 days for public comment."
What this means for exam study
Neither document mentions OSHA 10 or OSHA 30 courses or any certification exam. Because this is a proposal, the current 1910.134(e) requirements are the ones to study: a medical evaluation before fit testing or required use. If OSHA publishes a final rule, we will cover it as a new post. Our general industry PPE study guide covers respiratory protection, including medical evaluation and fit testing.