Schulman asks about 1,000 CFU Legionella threshold and lowering to 10
Schulman asks how DOHMH settled on the 1,000 CFU/mL mandatory notification threshold and whether it objects to lowering it to 10. Schiff says 1,000 is a longstanding CDC and research action level used by other jurisdictions, and notes DOHMH already requires corrective action at the same lower levels proposed in the bill.
to change gears here to talk about the cooling towers a little bit.
How did DOHMH initially settle on the 1,000 colony-forming units per milliliter threshold for mandatory notification?
That's an action level that has been established in the research literature, in longstanding CDC guidance, and is a level also that other jurisdictions follow.
Does DOHMH have any objections to lowering the threshold to 10 CFU milliliters, as is the practice in other jurisdictions?
So our action levels are the same as what's in the bill and what I think you're referring to colleagues in Vancouver, Canada.
We have the same action levels in New York City for owners to take corrective action, and we have very detailed specifications for what those action levels are.
The difference with Vancouver is that reporting requirement, although I will say that our programs are different, and our understanding is that in Vancouver as well, it is at 1,000 CFUs that those reports are made to the health department.