Florida Senate - 2018                                    SB 1680
       
       
        
       By Senator Montford
       
       
       
       
       
       3-00954B-18                                           20181680__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to immunization registry; amending s.
    3         381.003, F.S.; revising provisions relating to the
    4         communicable disease prevention and control programs
    5         under the Department of Health; deleting a provision
    6         that allows the parent or guardian of a child to
    7         refuse to have the child included in the immunization
    8         registry; providing requirements for electronic
    9         availability of, rather than transfer of, immunization
   10         records; requiring certain health care practitioners
   11         to submit and update vaccination data in the
   12         immunization registry; authorizing the department to
   13         adopt rules; amending s. 1003.22, F.S.; revising
   14         school-entry health requirements to require that
   15         students have a certificate of immunization on file
   16         with the department’s immunization registry; providing
   17         effective dates.
   18          
   19  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   20  
   21         Section 1. Section 381.003, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   22  read:
   23         381.003 Communicable disease and AIDS prevention and
   24  control.—
   25         (1) The department shall conduct a communicable disease
   26  prevention and control program as part of fulfilling its public
   27  health mission. A communicable disease is any disease caused by
   28  transmission of a specific infectious agent, or its toxic
   29  products, from an infected person, an infected animal, or the
   30  environment to a susceptible host, either directly or
   31  indirectly. The communicable disease program must include, but
   32  need not be limited to:
   33         (a) Programs for the prevention and control of tuberculosis
   34  in accordance with chapter 392.
   35         (b) Programs for the prevention and control of human
   36  immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immune deficiency
   37  syndrome in accordance with chapter 384 and this chapter.
   38         (c) Programs for the prevention and control of sexually
   39  transmissible diseases in accordance with chapter 384.
   40         (d) Programs for the prevention, control, and reporting of
   41  communicable diseases of public health significance as provided
   42  for in this chapter.
   43         (e) Programs for the prevention and control of vaccine
   44  preventable diseases, including programs to immunize school
   45  children as required by s. 1003.22(3)-(11) and the development
   46  of an automated, electronic, and centralized database and or
   47  registry of immunizations. The department shall ensure that all
   48  children in this state are immunized against vaccine-preventable
   49  diseases. The immunization registry shall allow the department
   50  to enhance current immunization activities for the purpose of
   51  improving the immunization of all children in this state.
   52         1. Except as provided in subparagraph 2., The department
   53  shall include all children born in this state in the
   54  immunization registry by using the birth records from the Office
   55  of Vital Statistics. The department shall add other children to
   56  the registry as immunization services are provided.
   57         2.The parent or guardian of a child may refuse to have the
   58  child included in the immunization registry by signing a form
   59  obtained from the department, or from the health care
   60  practitioner or entity that provides the immunization, which
   61  indicates that the parent or guardian does not wish to have the
   62  child included in the immunization registry. The decision to not
   63  participate in the immunization registry must be noted in the
   64  registry.
   65         2.3. The immunization registry must shall allow for
   66  immunization records to be electronically available to
   67  transferred to entities that are required by law to have such
   68  records, including, but not limited to, schools and, licensed
   69  child care facilities, and any other entity that is required by
   70  law to obtain proof of a child’s immunizations.
   71         3.4.A Any health care practitioner licensed under chapter
   72  458, chapter 459, or chapter 464 in this state who administers
   73  vaccinations or causes vaccinations to be administered to
   74  children from birth to 18 years of age or to students at a
   75  student health care facility of a Florida College System
   76  institution or a state university shall report vaccination data
   77  to the immunization registry. Vaccination data for other age
   78  ranges may be submitted to the immunization registry on an
   79  optional basis. Automated data upload from existing automated
   80  systems is an acceptable method for updating immunization
   81  information in the immunization registry. complies with rules
   82  adopted by the department to access the immunization registry
   83  may, through the immunization registry, directly access
   84  immunization records and update a child’s immunization history
   85  or exchange immunization information with another authorized
   86  practitioner, entity, or agency involved in a child’s care. The
   87  information included in the immunization registry must include
   88  the child’s name, date of birth, address, and any other unique
   89  identifier necessary to correctly identify the child; the
   90  immunization record, including the date, type of administered
   91  vaccine, and vaccine lot number; and the presence or absence of
   92  any adverse reaction or contraindication related to the
   93  immunization. Information received by the department for the
   94  immunization registry retains its status as confidential medical
   95  information and the department must maintain the confidentiality
   96  of that information as otherwise required by law. A health care
   97  practitioner or other agency that obtains information from the
   98  immunization registry must maintain the confidentiality of any
   99  medical records in accordance with s. 456.057 or as otherwise
  100  required by law.
  101         (2) The department may adopt rules pursuant to ss.
  102  120.536(1) and 120.54 to implement this section, repeal, and
  103  amend rules related to the prevention and control of
  104  communicable diseases and the administration of the immunization
  105  registry. Such rules may include procedures for investigating
  106  disease, timeframes for reporting disease, definitions,
  107  procedures for managing specific diseases, requirements for
  108  followup reports of known or suspected exposure to disease, and
  109  procedures for providing access to confidential information
  110  necessary for disease investigations. For purposes of the
  111  immunization registry, the rules may include procedures for a
  112  health care practitioner to obtain authorization to use the
  113  immunization registry, methods for a parent or guardian to elect
  114  not to participate in the immunization registry, and procedures
  115  for a health care practitioner licensed under chapter 458,
  116  chapter 459, or chapter 464 to access and share electronic
  117  immunization records with other entities allowed by law to have
  118  access to the records.
  119         Section 2. Effective July 1, 2021, subsection (4) of
  120  section 1003.22, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  121         1003.22 School-entry health examinations; immunization
  122  against communicable diseases; exemptions; duties of Department
  123  of Health.—
  124         (4) Each district school board and the governing authority
  125  of each private school shall establish and enforce as policy
  126  that, prior to admittance to or attendance in a public or
  127  private school, grades kindergarten through 12, or any other
  128  initial entrance into a Florida public or private school, each
  129  child present or have on file with the state registry of
  130  immunizations school a certification of immunization for the
  131  prevention of those communicable diseases for which immunization
  132  is required by the Department of Health and further shall
  133  provide for appropriate screening of its students for scoliosis
  134  at the proper age. Such certification becomes shall be made on
  135  forms approved and provided by the Department of Health and
  136  shall become a part of each student’s permanent record, to be
  137  transferred when the student transfers, is promoted, or changes
  138  schools. The transfer of such immunization certification by
  139  Florida public schools shall be accomplished using the Florida
  140  Automated System for Transferring Education Records and shall be
  141  deemed to meet the requirements of this section.
  142         Section 3. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
  143  act, this act shall take effect July 1, 2018.