S-4111.1  _______________________________________________

                    SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 6523

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington   57th Legislature        2002 Regular Session

By Senate Committee on Education (originally sponsored by Senators McAuliffe, Prentice, Finkbeiner, Johnson, Shin and Rasmussen)

READ FIRST TIME 02/07/2002.

Requiring a physician's medication or treatment order as a condition for children with life-threatening conditions to attend public school.

    AN ACT Relating to requiring a physician's medication or treatment order as a condition for children with life-threatening conditions to attend public school; and adding a new section to chapter 28A.210 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 28A.210 RCW to read as follows:

    (1) The attendance of every child at every public school in the state shall be conditioned upon the presentation before or on each child's first day of attendance at a particular school of a physician's medication or treatment order addressing any life-threatening health condition that requires the child to receive medical services at the school.  Once such an order has been presented, the child shall be allowed to attend school.

    (2) The chief administrator of every public school shall prohibit the further presence at the school for any and all purposes of each child for whom a physician's medication or treatment order has not been provided in accordance with this section if the child has a life-threatening health condition that may require medical services to be performed at the school and shall continue to prohibit the child's presence until such order has been provided.  The exclusion of a child from a school shall be accomplished in accordance with rules of the state board of education.  Before excluding a child, each school shall provide written notice to the parents or legal guardians of each child or to the adults in loco parentis to each child, who is not in compliance with the requirements of this section.  The notice shall include, but not be limited to, the following:  (a) The requirements established by this section; (b) the fact that the child will be prohibited from further attendance at the school unless this section is complied with; and (c) such procedural due process rights as are established pursuant to this section.

    (3) The state board of education shall adopt rules under chapter 34.05 RCW that establish the procedural and substantive due process requirements governing the exclusion of children from public schools under this section.  The superintendent of public instruction shall develop in consultation with the department of health any policies necessary to implement this section, including a definition of "life-threatening health condition."  The rules shall include any requirements under applicable federal laws.

    (4) As used in this section, "physician's medication or treatment order" means the authority a registered nurse obtains under RCW 18.79.260(2).

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