BILL NUMBER: SB 1051 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 12, 2010
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 27, 2010
AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 22, 2010
INTRODUCED BY Senator Huff
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Adams, Fuller, Jeffries,
and Logue)
FEBRUARY 16, 2010
An act to add and repeal Section 49414.7 of the Education Code,
relating to pupil health.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 1051, as amended, Huff. Emergency medical assistance:
administration of diastat.
Existing law provides that in the absence of a credentialed school
nurse or other licensed nurse onsite at the school, a school
district is authorized to provide school personnel with voluntary
medical training to provide emergency medical assistance to pupils
with diabetes suffering from severe hypoglycemia.
This bill would authorize a school district to provide school
employees with voluntary emergency medical training to provide, in
the absence of a credentialed school nurse or other licensed nurse
onsite at the school, emergency medical assistance to pupils with
epilepsy suffering from seizures, in accordance with performance
standards developed by specified entities. The bill would require the
State Department of Public Health to approve the performance
standards for distribution and make the standards available upon
request. The bill would allow a parent or guardian of a pupil with
epilepsy who has been prescribed diastat by the pupil's health care
provider to request the pupil's school to have one or more of its
employees receive voluntary training, as specified, in order to
administer diastat, as defined, in the event that the pupil suffers a
seizure when a nurse is not available. The bill would require a
school that decides to train school employees to distribute an
electronic notice, as specified, to all staff regarding the request.
The bill would provide that volunteer school employees who
are trained and who administer diastat in good faith be immune from
civil and criminal liability for injuries resulting from acts or
omissions in administering the diastat. The bill would
repeal these provisions on January 1, 2016.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. (a) The Legislature finds and declares that all
individuals with exceptional needs have a right to participate in a
free appropriate public education, and that special instruction and
services for these individuals are needed in order to ensure they
have the right to an appropriate educational opportunity to meet
their unique needs in compliance with the federal Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1400 et seq.).
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that individuals with
exceptional needs and children with disabilities under the federal
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 12101 et
seq.) and Section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29
U.S.C. Sec. 794) shall have a right to an appropriate educational
opportunity to meet their unique needs, and that children suffering
from seizures due to epilepsy have the right to appropriate programs
and services that are designed to meet their unique needs. In order
to meet that goal, it is the intent of the Legislature to authorize
nurses to train and supervise employees of school districts and
county offices of education to administer diastat to children with
epilepsy in the public schools. The American Academy of Pediatrics
and the Epilepsy Foundation of America support training of school
employees to administer diastat and believe that diastat may be
safely and effectively administered by trained school employees. The
Legislature further finds and declares that, in the absence of a
credentialed school nurse or other licensed nurse onsite at the
school, it is in the best interest of the health and safety of
children to allow trained school employees to administer diastat to
pupils in public schools.
SEC. 2. Section 49414.7 is added to the Education Code, to read:
49414.7. (a) It is the intent of the Legislature that, whenever
possible, diastat should be administered by a school nurse who has
been trained in its administration.
(b) Notwithstanding Sections 2052 and 2732 of the Business and
Professions Code, in the absence of a credentialed school nurse or
other licensed nurse onsite at the school, a school district may
provide school employees with voluntary emergency medical training to
provide emergency medical assistance to pupils with epilepsy
suffering from seizures. A school employee with voluntary emergency
medical training shall provide this emergency medical assistance in
accordance with the standards established pursuant to subdivision
(h) (k) , and the performance
instructions set forth by the licensed health care provider of the
pupil. A school employee who does not volunteer or who has not been
trained pursuant to subdivision (h) (k)
shall not be required to provide emergency medical assistance
pursuant to this section.
(b)
(c) If a pupil with epilepsy has been prescribed
diastat by his or her health care provider, the pupil's parent or
guardian may request the pupil's school to have one or more of its
employees receive training pursuant to this section in the
administration of diastat in the event that the pupil suffers a
seizure when a nurse is not available.
(c)
(d) Upon receipt of the parent's or guardian's request,
the school shall notify the parent or guardian that his or her child
may qualify for services or accommodations guaranteed under Section
504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, (29 U.S.C.
Sec. 794), assist the parent or guardian with the exploration of
that option, and encourage the parent or guardian to adopt that
option if it is determined that the child is eligible for a Section
504 plan.
(d)
(e) The school may ask the parent or guardian to sign a
notice verifying that the parent or guardian was given information
about Section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and that
the parent or guardian understands that it is his or her right to
request a Section 504 plan at any time.
(e)
(f) If the parent or guardian does not choose to have
the pupil assessed for a Section 504 plan, the school may create an
individualized health plan, seizure action plan, or other appropriate
health plan designed to acknowledge and prepare for the child's
health care needs in school. The plan may include the involvement of
trained volunteer school employees.
(f)
(g) If a school decides to train school employees
pursuant to this section, the school shall distribute an electronic
notice to all staff that states all of the following:
(1) The notice is a request for volunteers to administer diastat
to a pupil experiencing a severe epileptic seizure, in the absence of
a school nurse.
(2) Diastat is an FDA-approved, predosed, rectally administered
gel that reduces the severity of epileptic seizures.
(3) A volunteer will receive training from a licensed health
professional regarding the administration of diastat.
(4) Any agreement by an employee to administer diastat is
voluntary, and no employee of the school or district shall directly
or indirectly use or attempt to use his or her authority or influence
for the purpose of intimidating, threatening, coercing, or
attempting to intimidate, threaten, or coerce, any staff member who
does not choose to volunteer.
(5) A volunteer is protected from civil and criminal liability
pursuant to subdivision (k) of Section 49414.7 of the Education Code.
(g)
(h) If there are no volunteers, then the school shall
renotify the pupil's parent or guardian of the option to be assessed
for services and accommodations guaranteed under Section 504 of the
federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
(h)
(i) A school that chooses to participate pursuant to
this section shall have in place a school plan that shall include,
but not be limited to, all of the following:
(1) Identification of existing licensed staff within the district
or region who could be trained in the administration of diastat and
could be available to respond to an emergency need to administer
diastat. The school shall consult with the school district or county
office of education to obtain this information.
(2) Identification of pupils who may require the administration of
diastat.
(3) Written authorization from the parent or guardian for a
nonmedical school employee to administer diastat.
(4) The requirement that the parent or guardian notify the school
if the pupil has had diastat administered within the past four hours
on a schoolday.
(5) Notification of the parent or guardian that diastat has been
administered.
(6) A written statement from the pupil's health care practitioner
that shall include, but not be limited to, all the following:
(A) The pupil's name.
(B) The name and purpose of the medication.
(C) The prescribed dosage.
(D) The length of time the seizure may continue before the
administration of diastat becomes necessary.
(E) The method of administration.
(F) The frequency with which the medication may be administered.
(G) The circumstances under which the medication may be
administered.
(H) Any potential adverse responses by the pupil and recommended
mitigation actions, including when to call emergency services.
(I) A protocol for observing the pupil after a seizure, including,
but not limited to, whether the pupil should rest in the school
office, whether the pupil may return to class, and the length of time
the pupil should be under direct observation.
(i)
(j) A school that chooses to allow volunteers to
administer diastat shall compensate a volunteer when the
administration of diastat and subsequent monitoring of a pupil
requires a volunteer to work beyond his or her normally scheduled
hours.
(j)
(k) (1) The Legislature encourages the Epilepsy
Foundation of America to develop performance standards for the
training and supervision of school employees in providing emergency
medical assistance to pupils with epilepsy suffering from seizures.
The performance standards may be developed in cooperation with the
State Department of Education, the California School Nurses
Organization, the California Medical Association, and the American
Academy of Pediatrics. Upon development of the performance standards,
the State Department of Public Health shall approve the performance
standards for distribution and make those standards available upon
request.
(2) Training established pursuant to this subdivision shall
include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
(A) Recognition and treatment of different types of seizures.
(B) Administration of diastat.
(C) Basic emergency followup procedures including, but not limited
to, calling the emergency 911 telephone number and contacting the
pupil's parent or guardian.
(D) Techniques and procedures to ensure pupil privacy.
(3) Training by one or more of the following:
(A) A physician and surgeon.
(B) A credentialed school nurse.
(C) A registered nurse.
(D) A certificated public health nurse.
(4) Training provided in accordance with the performance standards
established pursuant to this section shall be deemed adequate
training for purposes of this section.
(5) (A) A school employee shall notify the credentialed school
nurse assigned to the school district if he or she administers
diastat pursuant to this section.
(B) If a credentialed school nurse is not assigned to the school
district, the school employee shall notify the superintendent of the
school district, or his or her designee, if he or she administers
diastat pursuant to this section.
(C) A school shall retain all records relating to the
administration of diastat while a pupil is under the supervision of
school staff.
(6) The pupil's parent or guardian shall provide all materials
necessary to administer diastat, including the information described
in paragraph (6) of subdivision (h) (i)
. A school shall not be responsible for providing any of the
necessary materials.
(k) A school employee who is trained to administer, and who,
acting in good faith, administers diastat shall be immune from
criminal or civil liability for perceived or real physical or
emotional injuries resulting from his or her acts or omissions in
administering the diastat, including, but not limited to, sex
offenses.
(l) For purposes of this section, "diastat" means diazepam rectal
gel, marketed as Diastat AcuDial, approved by the federal Food and
Drug Administration for patients with epilepsy for the management of
seizures.
(m) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2016, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2016, deletes or extends
that date.