Florida Senate - 2009 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 242
Barcode 637266
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
Comm: RE .
04/01/2009 .
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The Committee on Health Regulation (Bennett) recommended the
following:
1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
2
3 Delete everything after the enacting clause
4 and insert:
5 Section 1. Section 1003.22, Florida Statutes, is amended to
6 read:
7 1003.22 School-entry health examinations; immunization
8 against communicable diseases; exemptions; duties of Department
9 of Health.—
10 (1) Each district school board and the governing authority
11 of each private school shall require that each child who is
12 entitled to admittance to kindergarten, or is entitled to any
13 other initial entrance into a public or private school in this
14 state, present a certification of a school-entry health
15 examination performed within 1 year prior to enrollment in
16 school. Each district school board, and the governing authority
17 of each private school, may establish a policy that permits a
18 student up to 30 school days to present a certification of a
19 school-entry health examination. A homeless child, as defined in
20 s. 1003.01, shall be given a temporary exemption for 30 school
21 days. Any district school board that establishes such a policy
22 shall include provisions in its local school health services
23 plan to assist students in obtaining the health examinations.
24 However, any child shall be exempt from the requirement of a
25 health examination upon written request of the parent of the
26 child stating objections to the examination on religious
27 grounds.
28 (2) The State Board of Education, subject to the
29 concurrence of the Department of Health, shall adopt rules to
30 govern medical examinations and immunizations performed under
31 this section.
32 (3) The Department of Health may adopt rules necessary to
33 administer and enforce this section. The Department of Health,
34 after consultation with the Department of Education, shall adopt
35 rules governing the immunization of children against, the
36 testing for, and the control of preventable communicable
37 diseases. The rules must include procedures for exempting a
38 child from immunization requirements. Immunizations shall be
39 required for poliomyelitis, diphtheria, rubeola, rubella,
40 pertussis, mumps, tetanus, and other communicable diseases as
41 determined by rules of the Department of Health. The manner and
42 frequency of administration of the immunization or testing shall
43 conform to recognized standards of medical practice. The
44 Department of Health shall supervise and secure the enforcement
45 of the required immunization. Immunizations required by this
46 section shall be available at no cost from the county health
47 departments.
48 (4) Each district school board and the governing authority
49 of each private school shall establish and enforce as policy
50 that, prior to admittance to or attendance in a public or
51 private school, grades kindergarten through 12, or any other
52 initial entrance into a Florida public or private school, each
53 child present or have on file with the school a certification of
54 immunization for the prevention of those communicable diseases
55 for which immunization is required by the Department of Health
56 and further shall provide for appropriate screening of its
57 students for scoliosis at the proper age. Such certification
58 shall be made on forms approved and provided by the Department
59 of Health and shall become a part of each student’s permanent
60 record, to be transferred when the student transfers, is
61 promoted, or changes schools. The transfer of such immunization
62 certification by Florida public schools shall be accomplished
63 using the Florida Automated System for Transferring Education
64 Records and shall be deemed to meet the requirements of this
65 section.
66 (5) The provisions of this section shall not apply if:
67 (a) The parent of the child objects in writing that the
68 administration of immunizing agents conflicts with his or her
69 religious tenets or practices;
70 (b) A physician licensed under the provisions of chapter
71 458 or chapter 459 certifies in writing, on a form approved and
72 provided by the Department of Health, that the child should be
73 permanently exempt from the required immunization for medical
74 reasons stated in writing, based upon valid clinical reasoning
75 or evidence, demonstrating the need for the permanent exemption;
76 (c) A physician licensed under the provisions of chapter
77 458, chapter 459, or chapter 460 certifies in writing, on a form
78 approved and provided by the Department of Health, that the
79 child has received as many immunizations as are medically
80 indicated at the time and is in the process of completing
81 necessary immunizations;
82 (d) The Department of Health determines that, according to
83 recognized standards of medical practice, any required
84 immunization is unnecessary or hazardous; or
85 (e) An authorized school official issues a temporary
86 exemption, for a period not to exceed 30 school days, to permit
87 a student who transfers into a new county to attend class until
88 his or her records can be obtained. A homeless child, as defined
89 in s. 1003.01, shall be given a temporary exemption for 30
90 school days. The public school health nurse or authorized
91 private school official is responsible for followup of each such
92 student until proper documentation or immunizations are
93 obtained. An exemption for 30 days may be issued for a student
94 who enters a juvenile justice program to permit the student to
95 attend class until his or her records can be obtained or until
96 the immunizations can be obtained. An authorized juvenile
97 justice official is responsible for followup of each student who
98 enters a juvenile justice program until proper documentation or
99 immunizations are obtained.
100 (6) Prior to the administration of an immunization required
101 by this section, a licensed health care provider must:
102 (a) Provide the child’s parent, legal guardian, or other
103 authorized person with a copy of the current vaccine information
104 statement published about the vaccine by the Centers for Disease
105 Control and Prevention of the United States Department of Health
106 and Human Services;
107 (b) Have the child’s parent, legal guardian, or other
108 authorized person sign a statement in substantially the
109 following form:
110
111 I have received a copy of the vaccine information statement
112 published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. I
113 have read or have had explained to me information about the
114 vaccine to be administered, the benefits and risks of the
115 vaccine, how to report an adverse reaction, the availability of
116 the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, and how to get
117 more information about childhood diseases and vaccines. I
118 understand the benefits of the vaccine and ask that the vaccine
119 be administered to ...(name of minor child)..., for whom I am
120 authorized to make this request.
121 Signature: ...(signature)....
122 Name: ...(printed name of parent, legal guardian,
123 or other authorized person)....
124 Date: ...(date)....
125 (c) Keep a copy of the parent’s, legal guardian’s, or
126 authorized person’s signed statement as part of the minor
127 child’s permanent medical record; and
128 (d) Record a notation on the statement of the batch and lot
129 number for each vaccine administered to the child.
130
131 This section applies to each vaccine information statement
132 published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
133 whether or not the statement is covered by the federal National
134 Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986, 42 U.S.C. s. 300aa-26. If
135 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention publish a vaccine
136 information statement that covers multiple vaccines, the health
137 care provider may have the child’s parent, legal guardian, or
138 other authorized person sign a single statement for the vaccines
139 covered by the vaccine information statement.
140 (7)(6)(a) No person licensed by this state as a physician
141 or nurse shall be liable for any injury caused by his or her
142 action or failure to act in the administration of a vaccine or
143 other immunizing agent pursuant to the provisions of this
144 section if the person acts as a reasonably prudent person with
145 similar professional training would have acted under the same or
146 similar circumstances.
147 (b) No member of a district school board, or any of its
148 employees, or member of a governing board of a private school,
149 or any of its employees, shall be liable for any injury caused
150 by the administration of a vaccine to any student who is
151 required to be so immunized or for a failure to diagnose
152 scoliosis pursuant to the provisions of this section.
153 (8)(7) The parents of any child admitted to or in
154 attendance at a Florida public or private school, grades
155 prekindergarten through 12, are responsible for assuring that
156 the child is in compliance with the provisions of this section.
157 (9)(8) Each public school, including public kindergarten,
158 and each private school, including private kindergarten, shall
159 be required to provide to the county health department director
160 or administrator annual reports of compliance with the
161 provisions of this section. Reports shall be completed on forms
162 provided by the Department of Health for each kindergarten, and
163 other grade as specified; and the reports shall include the
164 status of children who were admitted at the beginning of the
165 school year. After consultation with the Department of
166 Education, the Department of Health shall establish by
167 administrative rule the dates for submission of these reports,
168 the grades for which the reports shall be required, and the
169 forms to be used.
170 (10)(9) The presence of any of the communicable diseases
171 for which immunization is required by the Department of Health
172 in a Florida public or private school shall permit the county
173 health department director or administrator or the State Health
174 Officer to declare a communicable disease emergency. The
175 declaration of such emergency shall mandate that all students in
176 attendance in the school who are not in compliance with the
177 provisions of this section be identified by the district school
178 board or by the governing authority of the private school; and
179 the school health and immunization records of such children
180 shall be made available to the county health department director
181 or administrator. Those children identified as not being
182 immunized against the disease for which the emergency has been
183 declared shall be temporarily excluded from school by the
184 district school board, or the governing authority of the private
185 school, until such time as is specified by the county health
186 department director or administrator.
187 (11)(10) Each district school board and the governing
188 authority of each private school shall:
189 (a) Refuse admittance to any child otherwise entitled to
190 admittance to kindergarten, or any other initial entrance into a
191 Florida public or private school, who is not in compliance with
192 the provisions of subsection (4).
193 (b) Temporarily exclude from attendance any student who is
194 not in compliance with the provisions of subsection (4).
195 (12)(11) The provisions of this section do not apply to
196 those persons admitted to or attending adult education classes
197 unless the adult students are under 21 years of age.
198 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.
199
200 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
201 And the title is amended as follows:
202 Delete everything before the enacting clause
203 and insert:
204 An act relating to childhood vaccinations; amending s. 1003.22,
205 F.S.; requiring health care providers to provide certain
206 information to parents, guardians and authorized persons before
207 administration of certain immunizations to children; requiring
208 health care providers to obtain a signed statement from the
209 parents, guardians and authorized persons documenting provision
210 of the information; requiring health care providers to use a
211 standard form for the signed statement; requiring health care
212 providers to record the batch and lot number of each vaccine on
213 the statement; requiring health care providers to maintain
214 certain records; providing for a single signed statement for the
215 administration of multiple vaccines; providing an effective
216 date.