BILL NUMBER: AB 1430 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 20, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Swanson
FEBRUARY 27, 2009
An act to add Section 49423.4 Sections
49423.4 and 49426.3 to the Education Code, relating to pupil
health.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1430, as amended, Swanson. Pupil health: licensed nurses.
Existing law establishes the public elementary and secondary
school system in this state. Under this system, school districts
throughout the state provide instruction to pupils in kindergarten
and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, at the public elementary and secondary
schools.
Existing law provides that any pupil who is required to take,
during the regular schoolday, medication prescribed for him or her by
a physician and surgeon , may be assisted by the
school nurse or other designated school personnel, or may carry and
self-administer prescription auto-injectable epinephrine if the
school district receives the appropriate written statements, as
prescribed, from the physician and the parent, foster parent, or
guardian of the pupil. Existing regulations of the
State Department of Education specify procedures to be followed in
the administration of medication to a pupil.
The existing Nursing Practice Act regulates the practice of
nursing, which is defined in the act as those functions, including
basic health care, that help people cope with difficulties in daily
living that are associated with their actual or potential health or
illness problems or the treatment thereof, and that require a
substantial amount of scientific knowledge or technical skill.
This bill would express findings and declarations of the
Legislature with respect to a Superior Court ruling relating to the
administration of medication to pupils in California public
elementary and secondary schools. This bill, notwithstanding the
provision referenced above that authorizes assistance to be given to
a pupil by school personnel during the schoolday under certain
conditions, would require that any medication that is administered to
a pupil who is required to take, during the regular schoolday,
medication prescribed for him or her by a physician or surgeon shall
be administered by a licensed nurse in compliance with the
Nursing Practice Act health care professional
operating within the scope of his or her practice .
The bill would specify that, for the purposes of these provisions,
the practice of nursing is defined as specified in the Nursing
Practice Act.
The bill would also codify the regulations of the State Department
of Education with respect to the administration of medication to a
pupil that are referred above.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) The Nursing Practice Act (Chapter 6 (commencing with Section
2700) of Division 2 of the Business and Professions Code) was
designed to protect patients in the administration of medications.
(b) According to the ruling of the Superior Court of California in
and for the County of Sacramento filed on December 26, 2008, in the
case of American Nurses Association et al. v. O'Connell et al., the
administration of medication to pupils in California public
elementary and secondary schools must be accomplished in accordance
with the requirements of the Nursing Practice Act.
(c) The court specifically found that state laws authorize the
administration of medication to a student only by a licensed health
care professional acting within the scope of practice for which he or
she is licensed to perform services.
(d) The court noted the statutorily authorized exceptions that
authorize an unlicensed person to administer medication, but
specifically noted that assistance within the meaning of Section
49423 of the Education Code does not encompass the administration of
medications. The court ruled that the plain meaning of assistance and
administration, as well as the legislative history of the section,
indicate that assistance is distinct from, rather than synonymous or
interchangeable with, administration.
SEC. 2. Section 49423.4 is added to the Education Code, to read:
49423.4. Notwithstanding Section 49423
(a) Notwithstanding Sections 49423, 49423.1,
and 49423.5 , any medication that is administered to a pupil
who is required to take, during the regular schoolday, medication
prescribed for him or her by a physician or surgeon shall be
administered by a licensed nurse in compliance with the
Nursing Practice Act (Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 2700) of
Division 2 of the Business and Professions Code). Nothing in this
section prohibits an individual authorized under Section 49414 or
49414.5 from rendering emergency medical aid. health
care professional operating within the scope of his or her practice.
(b) Nothing in this section prohibits an individual from rendering
emergency medical aid in either of the following circumstances:
(1) The medical aid is authorized by Section 49414 or 49414.5.
(2) When it appears to the individual that the child is in clear
and present danger.
SEC. 3. Section 49426.3 is added to the
Education Code , to read:
49426.3. (a) For the purposes of this article, the practice of
nursing is defined as specified in subdivision (b) of Section 2725 of
the Business and Professions Code.
(b) A school nurse may administer medication to a pupil or
otherwise assist a pupil in the administration of medication as
allowed by law and in keeping with applicable standards of
professional practice.
(c) Other designated school personnel may administer medication to
pupils or otherwise assist pupils in the administration of
medication as allowed by law and, if they are licensed health care
professionals, in keeping with applicable standards of professional
practice for their license.
(d) The pupil's parent or legal guardian may administer medication
to the pupil or otherwise assist the pupil in the administration of
medication as allowed by law.
(e) An individual designated to do so by the parent or legal
guardian may administer medication to the pupil or otherwise assist
the pupil in administration of medication as allowed by law. A local
education agency may establish rules governing the designation of an
individual by a parent or legal guardian in order to ensure all of
the following:
(1) The individual is clearly identified.
(2) The individual is willing to accept the designation.
(3) The individual being designated is permitted to be present on
the schoolsite.
(4) Any limitations on the individual's authority in his or her
capacity as designee are clearly established.
(5) The individual's service as a designee would not be
inconsistent or in conflict with his or her employment
responsibilities, if the individual being designated is employed by
the local education agency.