Senate Bill No. 38

(By Senator Holliday)

____________

[Introduced February 10, 1993; referred to the

Committee on Health and Human Resources; and

then to the Committee on Finance.]

____________




A BILL to amend and reenact sections four and five, article three, chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to compulsory immunization of school children; adding hepatitis-b and mumps to the list of diseases for which immunization is required; and providing for the free distribution of the vaccines.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That sections four and five, article three, chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty- one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF COMMUNICABLE AND OTHER INFECTIOUS DISEASES.

§16-3-4. Compulsory immunization of school children; information disseminated; offenses; penalties.

Whenever a resident birth occurs, the state director ofhealth shall promptly provide parents of the newborn child with information on immunizations mandated by this state or required for admission to a public school in this state.
All children entering school for the first time in this state shall have been immunized against diphtheria, hepatitis-b, mumps, polio, rubeola, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough. Any person who cannot give satisfactory proof of having been immunized previously or a certificate from a reputable physician showing that an immunization for any or all diphtheria, hepatitis-b, mumps, polio, rubeola, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough is impossible or improper or sufficient reason why any or all immunizations should not be done, shall be immunized for diphtheria, hepatitis-b, mumps, polio, rubeola, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough prior to being admitted in any of the schools in the state. No child or person shall be admitted or received in any of the schools of the state until he or she has been immunized as hereinafter provided or produces a certificate from a reputable physician showing that an immunization for diphtheria, hepatitis-b, mumps, polio, rubeola, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough has been done or is impossible or improper or other sufficient reason why such immunizations have not been done. Any teacher having information concerning any person who attempts to enter school for the first time without having been immunized against diphtheria, hepatitis-b, mumps, polio, rubeola, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough shall report the names of all such persons to the county health officer. It shall be the dutyof the health officer in counties having a full-time health officer to see that such persons are immunized before entering school: Provided, That persons enrolling from schools outside of the state may be provisionally enrolled under minimum criteria established by the director of the department of health so that the person's immunization may be completed while missing a minimum amount of school: Provided, however, That no person shall be allowed to enter school without at least one dose of each required vaccine.
In counties where there is no full-time health officer or district health officer, the county commission or municipal council shall appoint competent physicians to do the immunizations and fix their compensation. County health departments shall furnish the biologicals for this immunization free of charge.
Health officers and physicians who shall do this immunization work shall give to all persons and children a certificate free of charge showing that they have been immunized against diphtheria, hepatitis-b, mumps, polio, rubeola, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough, or he or she may give the certificate to any person or child whom he or she knows to have been immunized against diphtheria, hepatitis-b, mumps, polio, rubeola, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough. If any physician shall give any person a false certificate of immunization against diphtheria, hepatitis-b, mumps, polio, rubeola, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough, he or she shall be guilty of a misdemeanor,and, upon conviction, shall be fined not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred dollars.
Any parent or guardian who refuses to permit his or her child to be immunized against diphtheria, hepatitis-b, mumps, polio, rubeola, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough, who cannot give satisfactory proof that the child or person has been immunized against diphtheria, hepatitis-b, mumps, polio, rubeola, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough previously, or a certificate from a reputable physician showing that immunization for any or all is impossible or improper, or sufficient reason why any or all immunizations should not be done, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and except as herein otherwise provided, shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not less than ten nor more than fifty dollars for each offense.
§16-3-5. Distribution of free vaccine preventives of disease.

The state director of health shall acquire vaccine for the prevention of polio, measles, mumps, rubella, diphtheria, hepatitis-b, pertusis, tetanus, smallpox and other vaccine preventives of disease as may be deemed necessary or required by law, and shall distribute the same, free of charge, in such quantities as he may deem necessary, to county and municipal health officers, to be used by them for the benefit of, and without expense to the citizens within their respective jurisdictions, to check contagions and control epidemics.
The county and municipal health officers shall have the responsibility to properly store and distribute, free of charge,vaccines to private medical or osteopathic physicians within their jurisdictions to be utilized to check contagions and control epidemics: Provided, That the private medical or osteopathic physicians shall not make a charge for the vaccine itself when administering it to a patient. The county and municipal health officers shall provide a receipt to the state director of health for any vaccine delivered as herein provided.



NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to add hepatitis-b and mumps to the list of diseases for which school children are required to be immunized. The bill also provides for the free distribution of the necessary vaccines.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.