Colorado Second State to Enact Surgical Smoke Evacuation Law

Colorado becomes the second state (after Rhode Island) to require hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers to implement a surgical smoke evacuation system that prevents human exposure to surgical smoke. Effective May 1, 2021, all planned procedures in Colorado which are likely to generate surgical smoke must be conducted in facilities with policies and equipment in place to prevent human exposure to the smoke. According to the estimates of AORN, each year 500,000 healthcare workers, including surgeons, nurses, anesthesiologists, and other staff in the operating room, are exposed to laser or electrosurgical smoke, which can lead to serious and life-threatening respiratory diseases.