HSB 517 (LSB 5262DP (8) 83)

SENATE/HOUSE FILE _____

BY  (PROPOSED DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH BILL)

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to health-related activities and regulation by the department of public health, and making penalties applicable.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

DIVISION I
PUBLIC HEALTH DISASTER SCHOOL CLOSINGS
    Section 1.  Section 135.144, Code Supplement 2009, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  13.  Order, in conjunction with the department of education, temporary closure of any public school or nonpublic school, as defined in section 280.2, to prevent or control the transmission of a communicable disease as defined in section 139A.2.

DIVISION II
SCHOOL DENTAL SCREENINGS
    Sec. 2.  Section 135.17, subsection 1, paragraphs a and b, Code Supplement 2009, are amended to read as follows:
   a.  Except as provided in paragraphs “c” and “d”, the parent or guardian of a child enrolled in elementary school shall provide evidence to the school district or accredited nonpublic elementary school in which the child is enrolled of the child having, no earlier than three years of age but prior to reaching six years of age no later than four months after enrollment, at a minimum, a dental screening performed by a licensed physician as defined in chapter 148, a licensed nurse licensed under chapter 152, a licensed physician assistant as defined in section 148C.1, or a licensed dental hygienist or dentist as defined in chapter 153. Except as provided in paragraphs “c” and “d”, the parent or guardian of a child enrolled in high school shall provide evidence to the school district or accredited nonpublic high school in which the child is enrolled of the child having, at a minimum, a dental screening performed within the prior year no earlier than one year prior to enrollment and not later than four months after enrollment by a licensed dental hygienist or dentist as defined in chapter 153. A school district or accredited nonpublic school shall provide access to a process to complete the screenings described in this paragraph as appropriate.
   b.  A person performing authorized to perform a dental screening required by this section shall record the fact of having conducted that the screening was completed, and such additional information required by the department, on uniform forms developed by the department in cooperation with the department of education. The form shall include a space for the person performing the screening to summarize any condition that may indicate a need for special services.
    Sec. 3.  Section 135.17, subsection 3, Code Supplement 2009, is amended to read as follows:
   3.  By June 30 May 31 annually, each local board shall furnish the department with evidence that each student enrolled in any public or nonpublic school within the local board’s jurisdiction has met the dental screening requirement in this section.

DIVISION III
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
    Sec. 4.  Section 135.11, subsection 13, Code Supplement 2009, is amended by striking the subsection.
    Sec. 5.  Section 135.11, subsection 29, Code Supplement 2009, is amended to read as follows:
   29.  In consultation with the advisory committee for perinatal guidelines, develop and maintain the statewide perinatal program based on the recommendations of the American academy of pediatrics and the American college of obstetricians and gynecologists contained in the most recent edition of the guidelines for perinatal care, and shall adopt rules in accordance with chapter 17A to implement those recommendations. Hospitals within the state shall determine whether to participate in the statewide perinatal program, and select the hospital’s level of participation in the program. A hospital having determined to participate in the program shall comply with the guidelines appropriate to the level of participation selected by the hospital.  Perinatal program surveys and reports are privileged and confidential and are not subject to discovery, subpoena, or other means of legal compulsion for their release to a person other than the affected hospital, and are not admissible in evidence in a judicial or administrative proceeding other than a proceeding involving verification of the participating hospital under this subsection.
    Sec. 6.  Section 135.11, Code Supplement 2009, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  31.  Administer the Iowa youth survey, in collaboration with other state agencies, as appropriate, every two years to students in grades six, eight, and eleven in Iowa’s public and nonpublic schools. Survey data shall be evaluated and reported, with aggregate data available online at the Iowa youth survey internet site.
EXPLANATION
   This bill pertains to activities under the purview of the department of public health (DPH) relating to public health disaster authority, school dental screenings, the statewide perinatal program, the Iowa youth survey, and regulation of the distribution of venereal disease prophylactics. The bill is comprised of divisions.
   Division I amends Code section 135.144 relating to the additional duties of DPH related to a public health disaster, to provide that if a public health disaster exists, DPH, in conjunction with the department of education, may order, temporary closure of any public school or nonpublic school, to prevent or control the transmission of a communicable disease.
   Division II amends Code section 135.17 relating to school dental screenings. The bill amends the timeframes for an elementary school child to have a required dental screening from no earlier than three years of age but prior to reaching six years of age, to no earlier than three years of age but not later than four months after enrollment in elementary school. The timeframe for students enrolled in high school to have a required dental screening is also amended from having a dental screening performed within the year prior to enrollment to no earlier than one year prior to enrollment and no later than four months after enrollment. The bill allows that the dental screenings may be provided by any provider who is a licensed specified provider, which may include providers licensed outside of the state, and that any person authorized to perform a dental screening may record that the screening was completed. Finally, the bill amends the annual date, from June 30 to May 31, by which each school board shall furnish DPH with evidence that each student enrolled in the local board’s jurisdiction has met the dental screening requirements.
   Division III, miscellaneous provisions, amends Code section 135.11, duties of the department, to provide that program surveys and reports of the statewide perinatal program are privileged and confidential; to codify the Iowa youth survey as a duty of DPH; and to provide for the repeal of provisions relating to regulation of the distribution of venereal disease prophylactics.
   An existing provision applies to any violation of a provision of the bill. Code section 135.38 provides that any person who knowingly violates any provision of Code chapter 135, or of the rules of the department, or any lawful order, written or oral, of the department or of its officers, or authorized agents, is guilty of a simple misdemeanor.