NIOSH

NIOSH (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) is the U.S. federal research agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations to prevent work-related injury, illness, disability and death. It was created by the Occupational Safety and Health Act, signed on December 29, 1970, and began operations in 1971; it grew out of the earlier Division of Industrial Hygiene (1914). NIOSH is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Unlike OSHA (the regulatory and enforcement body), NIOSH performs research and advisory work rather than regulation. Its activities include setting Recommended Exposure Limits (RELs), approving and certifying respirators (including the N95 class), the Health Hazard Evaluation (HHE) Program, epidemiological surveillance programs, and administering the World Trade Center Health Program. Through its Center for Occupational Robotics Research (CORR), NIOSH studies the safety of workers interacting with robots and autonomous systems. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with laboratories and offices in Cincinnati, Morgantown, Pittsburgh, Denver, Anchorage, Spokane and Atlanta. The agency historically employed about 1,200 people; in 2025, major staff reductions and the closure of several facilities were announced as part of an HHS reorganization.