Newberry County prepares two-tier firefighter physicals ahead of new OSHA guidance; budget request submitted

Brandon Wicker, merged service coordinator, told the council an impending OSHA requirement will require medical clearance for virtually all emergency responders, prompting Newberry County to redesign its firefighter physical program.

Wicker described a two-tier approach: tier 1 will be a full physical including treadmill and lung-capacity testing for full operators who will use SCBA (self-contained breathing apparatus); tier 2 will omit treadmill and lung-capacity testing and those employees would not be cleared for SCBA use. He said the county is coordinating with Meg at Newberry Hospital to define tier differences, pricing, and scheduling.

“So we’re looking at going to at least two tiers of physicals…one that’s the full-blown one on the treadmill…and the other is going to cut out the treadmill and possibly the lung-capacity test,” Wicker said. He reported that, as of his update, 36 people had fully signed up for the current year’s physicals and that an earlier outreach list included roughly 120 people who were asked to have orders for blood work.

Wicker said scheduling has had some hiccups but the hospital is offering multiple morning, afternoon and evening slots, and can accommodate four people per slot; the county ran appointments through February and can add more if needed. He said a budget request has been submitted to cover higher costs so the county is not “playing catch-up” when OSHA’s requirements take effect.

Next steps: staff will follow up with hospital contact Meg to refine tier definitions, final pricing, and the current roster; Wicker will provide updated counts and cost estimates to the council.