BILL REQ. #:  S-4553.1 

Read first time 02/08/12.   Referred to Committee on Early Learning & K-12 Education.

     AN ACT Relating to placing epinephrine auto-injectors in schools; adding a new section to chapter 28A.210 RCW; and creating a new section.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   (1) The legislature finds that allergies are a serious medical disorder that affect more than one in five persons in the United States and are the sixth leading cause of chronic disease. Anaphylaxis is the most severe form of allergic reaction. Rapid and appropriate administration of the drug epinephrine to a patient suffering an anaphylaxis allergic reaction may make the difference between the life and death of that patient.
     (2) The legislature further finds that, on many days, as much as twenty percent of the nation's combined adult and child population can be found in a school, and schools need to be prepared to treat allergic reactions in the event a student's personal epinephrine auto-injector is not available or the student is having a reaction for the first time.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 28A.210 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) A school may maintain at a school in a locked, secure location a supply of epinephrine auto-injectors based on the number of students enrolled in the school.
     (2) A physician may prescribe epinephrine auto-injectors in the name of the school district or school to be maintained for use when necessary.
     (3) When a student does not have an epinephrine auto-injector or a prescription for an epinephrine auto-injector on file, the school nurse may utilize the school district or school supply of epinephrine auto-injectors to respond to anaphylactic reaction, under a standing protocol from a physician employed under RCW 28A.210.300 or any other physician with which the district has contracted for medical services.
     (4)(a) If a student is injured or harmed due to the administration of epinephrine that a physician has prescribed to a school under this section, the physician may not be held responsible for the injury unless he or she issued the prescription with a conscious disregard for safety.
     (b) If a student is injured or harmed due to the administration of epinephrine that a school employee has administered to a student, the school employee may not be held responsible for the injury unless he or she administered the epinephrine injection with a conscious disregard for safety.
     (c) A school, school district, or the office of the superintendent of public instruction is not responsible for any injury that has occurred under (a) or (b) of this subsection.