Protect Students' Health: Urge Governor Brown to Veto     SB 161(Huff), Rectal Administration of Diastat Bill

Contact Governor Jerry Brown and urge him to veto SB 161 (Huff), a CTA-opposed measu
re authorizing educators, educational support professionals, and classified employees to "volunteer" to rectally insert a form of valium into students experiencing epileptic seizures.

Governor Jerry Brown must decide whether to veto SB 161, which is opposed by teachers, nurses, school nurses, and parents.

The measure puts children's health at risk, and it also places "volunteers" in jeopardy of being sued by parents of students inadvertently injured during the procedure.

Contact Governor Jerry Brown immediately to urge him to veto SB 161.

Phone: (916) 445-4341; Fax: (916) 558-3160

Then e-mail us at ctaaction@cta.org to let us know you made the call.

Some Key Points about SB 161

·         Educators are concerned about the danger to students by having unlicensed school personnel -- including teachers, other certificated personnel, and education support professionals -- administer Diastat.  Educators believe it is unrealistic to assume unlicensed school employees will receive sufficient training to distinguish between different types of seizures and recognize whether the seizure can be safely treated with Diastat. Inappropriate administration is not harmless; it can result in serious consequences, such as respiratory depression.

·         The manufacturer's instructions call for the medication to be administered through a student's rectal cavity while she/he is in the middle of an epileptic seizure. Unlicensed educational personnel would be required to administer the drug to students wherever the seizure occurs - the playground, the school bus, a field trip, or a classroom.

·         Nothing in SB 161 protects school employees against being disciplined or fired if they fail to volunteer or if something goes wrong during the administration of Diastat. The current "liability" language does not go far enough to protect school employee "volunteers" from a myriad of civil and criminal liabilities.

·         Educators are concerned about the health and safety of all school children. SB 161 is the wrong answer to get students the health services they need. Under current law, parents can already use the 504 process to get their child specialized medical services.

Please contact CTA Legislative Advocate Toni Trigueiro (ttrigueiro@cta.org) if you have any concerns or questions.

Posted at these links are the full text of a CTA Action Alert, a CTA letter opposing the bill, a Coalition letter on the bill, and an AP article about the bill's potential impact on student health: