Bloodborne pathogens certification in Hawaii: who needs it and what's accepted
Checked October 2026 · OSHA coverage: State plan (private and public employers)
Hawaii runs its own OSHA-approved state plan, the Hawaii Occupational Safety and Health Division (HIOSH), which enforces a bloodborne pathogens rule at least as strict as 29 CFR 1910.1030 for private and public employers. Employers in Honolulu, Hilo and Kailua and the rest of the state must train every employee with occupational exposure at hire and yearly, covering the elements in 29 CFR 1910.1030(g)(2)(vii), and keep the record for three years. No agency approves the course; the employer accepts the certificate. Bloodborne Cert's online course covers those elements in about an hour, costs $18 per person, and is narrated in English, Spanish and Amharic. Hawaii also has a licensing rule for tattoo artists, described below.
Tattoo artists in Hawaii
Hawaii's tattoo artist license requires an online body-art course from one of the providers listed by the Department of Health, followed by a state exam. This course is not on that list.
Source: Hawaii DOH: How to obtain a new tattoo artist license · County and state body-art table on TattooCert
Who the rule covers in Hawaii
Anyone whose job can reasonably be expected to involve contact with blood or other potentially infectious materials: nurses, CNAs and medical assistants; dental staff; home health aides; EMS; lab and phlebotomy staff; custodians and cleaning crews assigned to blood or sharps cleanup; school nurses and designated first-aid responders; child care staff; tattoo and piercing artists; and new hires in any of those roles.
What this certificate shows
Your name, course and completion date, a retrain-by date 12 months out, a verification number and QR code anyone can check at bloodbornecert.com/verify, and on page 2 each OSHA training element the course covered. You get a reminder before the retrain-by date. Employers can buy seats for staff, invite them by email and see who has passed.
Questions
- Does Hawaii approve online bloodborne pathogens courses?
- No state or federal agency approves general bloodborne pathogens courses; OSHA does not accredit training providers. In Hawaii, as everywhere, the employer must provide training covering the elements in 29 CFR 1910.1030(g)(2)(vii) and keep the record. An online course that covers those elements satisfies the rule. The exception is licensing: Hawaii has a separate rule for tattoo artists (see above).
- Will my Hawaii employer accept an online certificate?
- Most do. The certificate should name the OSHA standard, show your name, completion date and provider, and be verifiable. Bloodborne Cert certificates carry a verification number anyone can check at bloodbornecert.com/verify and list the training elements on page 2. The employer still adds its own exposure control plan and a way to ask questions. Clinical sites and some employers name a provider, so ask first.
- How often is bloodborne pathogens training required in Hawaii?
- Under OSHA, at the time of initial assignment and at least once a year after that, plus whenever tasks change in a way that affects exposure. Hawaii's state plan follows the same annual cycle. Licensing rules for tattoo artists in Hawaii set their own schedule, described above.
Sources
- 29 CFR 1910.1030, Bloodborne pathogens (OSHA)
- OSHA: State plans
- Hawaii DOH: How to obtain a new tattoo artist license