| 1 | 1 | | 23 LC 49 1045 |
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| 2 | 2 | | H. B. 320 |
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| 3 | 3 | | - 1 - |
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| 4 | 4 | | House Bill 320 |
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| 5 | 5 | | By: Representatives Scott of the 76 |
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| 6 | 6 | | th |
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| 7 | 7 | | , Davis of the 87 |
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| 8 | 8 | | th |
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| 9 | 9 | | , Schofield of the 63 |
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| 10 | 10 | | rd |
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| 11 | 11 | | , and Hutchinson |
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| 12 | 12 | | of the 106 |
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| 13 | 13 | | th |
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| 14 | 14 | | |
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| 15 | 15 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 16 | 16 | | AN ACT |
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| 17 | 17 | | To amend Part 3 of Article 16 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia |
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| 18 | 18 | | 1 |
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| 19 | 19 | | Annotated, relating to the health of students generally, so as to require the State Board of2 |
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| 20 | 20 | | Education to adopt rules to require all certificated public school personnel to receive annual3 |
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| 21 | 21 | | training in depression and suicide awareness and prevention; to provide for the establishment4 |
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| 22 | 22 | | and purpose of the Student Mental Health Screenings Grant Program; to provide for the5 |
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| 23 | 23 | | allocation of grant awards under such program; to provide for grant application requirements;6 |
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| 24 | 24 | | to provide for implementation of grant funded mental health screening programs by local7 |
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| 25 | 25 | | school systems; to provide for local school systems to partner with organizations and8 |
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| 26 | 26 | | healthcare providers specializing in pediatric and adolescent mental health to perform mental9 |
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| 27 | 27 | | health screenings; to provide for requirements of the Department of Education to develop a10 |
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| 28 | 28 | | model policy and guidance and to approve training materials; to revise requirements for local11 |
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| 29 | 29 | | school systems to adopt certain policies; to provide for a definition; to provide for legislative12 |
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| 30 | 30 | | findings; to provide for construction; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting13 |
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| 31 | 31 | | laws; and for other purposes.14 23 LC 49 1045 |
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| 32 | 32 | | H. B. 320 |
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| 33 | 33 | | - 2 - |
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| 34 | 34 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA: |
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| 35 | 35 | | 15 |
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| 36 | 36 | | SECTION 1.16 |
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| 37 | 37 | | The General Assembly finds that:17 |
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| 38 | 38 | | (1) Depression is the most common mental health disorder among American teenagers and18 |
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| 39 | 39 | | adults, with over 2.8 million young people between the ages of 12 and 17 experiencing at19 |
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| 40 | 40 | | least one major depressive episode each year, approximately 10 to 15 percent of teenagers20 |
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| 41 | 41 | | exhibiting at least one symptom of depression at any time, and roughly 5 percent of21 |
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| 42 | 42 | | teenagers suffering from major depression at any time. Teenage depression is two to three22 |
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| 43 | 43 | | times more common in females than in males;23 |
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| 44 | 44 | | (2) Various biological, psychological, and environmental risk factors may contribute to24 |
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| 45 | 45 | | teenage depression, which can lead to substance and alcohol abuse, social isolation, poor25 |
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| 46 | 46 | | academic and workplace performance, unnecessary risk taking, early pregnancy, and26 |
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| 47 | 47 | | suicide, which is the third leading cause of death among teenagers. Approximately 2027 |
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| 48 | 48 | | percent of teenagers with depression seriously consider suicide and one in 12 attempt28 |
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| 49 | 49 | | suicide. Untreated teenage depression can also result in adverse consequences into and29 |
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| 50 | 50 | | throughout adulthood;30 |
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| 51 | 51 | | (3) Most teenagers who experience depression suffer from more than one episode. It is31 |
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| 52 | 52 | | estimated that although teenage depression is highly treatable through combinations of32 |
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| 53 | 53 | | therapy, individual and group counseling, and certain medications, fewer than one-third of33 |
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| 54 | 54 | | teenagers experiencing depression seek help or treatment.; and34 |
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| 55 | 55 | | (4) The proper detection and diagnosis of depression is key in reducing the risk of teenage35 |
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| 56 | 56 | | suicide and improving physical and mental health outcomes for young people. It is36 |
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| 57 | 57 | | therefore fitting and appropriate to establish school based depression screenings to help37 |
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| 58 | 58 | | identify the symptoms of depression and facilitate access to appropriate treatment.38 23 LC 49 1045 |
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| 59 | 59 | | H. B. 320 |
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| 60 | 60 | | - 3 - |
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| 61 | 61 | | SECTION 2. |
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| 62 | 62 | | 39 |
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| 63 | 63 | | Part 3 of Article 16 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,40 |
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| 64 | 64 | | relating to the health of students generally, is amended by revising Code Section 20-2-779.1,41 |
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| 65 | 65 | | relating to suicide prevention and awareness training and no duty of care imposed, as42 |
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| 66 | 66 | | follows:43 |
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| 67 | 67 | | "20-2-779.1.44 |
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| 68 | 68 | | (a)(1) The Department |
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| 69 | 69 | | State Board of Education shall adopt rules to require that all45 |
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| 70 | 70 | | certificated public school personnel receive annual training in depression and suicide46 |
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| 71 | 71 | | awareness and prevention. This training shall be provided within the framework of47 |
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| 72 | 72 | | existing in-service training programs offered and materials approved by the Department48 |
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| 73 | 73 | | of Education or as part of required professional development offered by a local school49 |
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| 74 | 74 | | system.50 |
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| 75 | 75 | | (2)(A) Subject to appropriations, the State Board of Education is authorized to51 |
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| 76 | 76 | | establish the Student Mental Health Screenings Grant Program. The purpose of such52 |
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| 77 | 77 | | grant program shall be to provide funding and resources to allow local school systems53 |
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| 78 | 78 | | to implement mental health screening programs in schools to identify students in the54 |
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| 79 | 79 | | grades six through 12 who are at risk of depression and suicide.55 |
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| 80 | 80 | | (B) Awards under the grant program shall be allocated to local school systems in a56 |
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| 81 | 81 | | manner to be determined by the State Board of Education; provided, however, that the57 |
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| 82 | 82 | | State Board of Education shall, to the greatest extent possible, approve applications58 |
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| 83 | 83 | | from at least one local school system each in the northern, central, and southern59 |
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| 84 | 84 | | regions of the state and shall seek a cross section of local school systems from urban,60 |
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| 85 | 85 | | suburban, and rural areas of the state.61 |
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| 86 | 86 | | (2)(b)(1) The Department of Education shall, in consultation with the Department of62 |
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| 87 | 87 | | Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, the Suicide Prevention Program63 |
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| 88 | 88 | | established pursuant to Code Section 37-1-27, and depression and suicide prevention64 |
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| 89 | 89 | | experts, develop and approve a list of approved training materials to fulfill the65 23 LC 49 1045 |
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| 90 | 90 | | H. B. 320 |
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| 91 | 91 | | - 4 - |
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| 92 | 92 | | requirements of this subsection which may include training materials currently being used66 |
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| 93 | 93 | | by a local school system if such training materials meet any criteria established by the67 |
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| 94 | 94 | | department.68 |
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| 95 | 95 | | (3) Approved Such approved training materials shall include training on how to identify69 |
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| 96 | 96 | | appropriate mental health services, both within the school and also within the larger70 |
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| 97 | 97 | | community, and when and how to refer youth and their families to those services.71 |
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| 98 | 98 | | (4) Approved materials and may include programs that can be completed through72 |
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| 99 | 99 | | self-review of suitable depression and suicide awareness and prevention materials.73 |
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| 100 | 100 | | (2) To assist local school systems in developing their own policies for student depression74 |
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| 101 | 101 | | and suicide awareness and prevention as required in subsection (c) of this Code section,75 |
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| 102 | 102 | | the Department of Education, in consultation with the Suicide Prevention Program within76 |
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| 103 | 103 | | the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, shall establish a77 |
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| 104 | 104 | | model policy for use by local school systems in accordance with this Code section.78 |
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| 105 | 105 | | (3)(A) To assist local school systems in selecting a research based screening tool to use79 |
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| 106 | 106 | | as part of mental health screening programs, the Department of Education, in80 |
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| 107 | 107 | | consultation with the Suicide Prevention Program within the Department of Behavioral81 |
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| 108 | 108 | | Health and Developmental Disabilities, may develop a list of preapproved research82 |
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| 109 | 109 | | based screening tools that are validated to screen depression and other mental health83 |
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| 110 | 110 | | risks in adolescents.84 |
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| 111 | 111 | | (B) No later than January 1, 2024, the Department of Education, in consultation with85 |
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| 112 | 112 | | the Suicide Prevention Program within the Department of Behavioral Health and86 |
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| 113 | 113 | | Developmental Disabilities, shall develop guidance and resources for local school87 |
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| 114 | 114 | | systems to facilitate the establishment of partnerships with organizations or healthcare88 |
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| 115 | 115 | | providers specializing in pediatric and adolescent mental health to conduct mental89 |
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| 116 | 116 | | health screenings.90 |
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| 117 | 117 | | (4)(A) As used in this paragraph, the term 'telehealth' means services provided by a91 |
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| 118 | 118 | | healthcare provider through the use of information and communications technologies,92 23 LC 49 1045 |
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| 119 | 119 | | H. B. 320 |
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| 120 | 120 | | - 5 - |
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| 121 | 121 | | including, but not limited to, telephones, remote patient monitoring devices, and other93 |
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| 122 | 122 | | electronic means, to facilitate the assessment, diagnosis, consultation, treatment,94 |
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| 123 | 123 | | education, care management, and self-management of a student's healthcare when the95 |
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| 124 | 124 | | healthcare provider is at a remote location and the student is at a school or is96 |
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| 125 | 125 | | participating in any school related function.97 |
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| 126 | 126 | | (B) The Department of Education, in consultation with the Suicide Prevention Program98 |
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| 127 | 127 | | within the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities and99 |
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| 128 | 128 | | appropriate stakeholders, including stakeholders with experience in telehealth, shall, on100 |
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| 129 | 129 | | or before October 1, 2023, develop guidance for the use of telehealth in public schools101 |
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| 130 | 130 | | to provide mental health and behavioral health services, including, but not limited to102 |
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| 131 | 131 | | mental health screenings, to students at school or during any school related function.103 |
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| 132 | 132 | | The guidance developed pursuant to this subparagraph shall include, but shall not be104 |
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| 133 | 133 | | limited to, guidance on the following:105 |
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| 134 | 134 | | (i) Qualifications of individuals authorized, within the scope of their practice, to106 |
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| 135 | 135 | | assist students in accessing mental health and behavioral health services via telehealth107 |
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| 136 | 136 | | while such student is at school or during any school related function;108 |
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| 137 | 137 | | (ii) Qualifications of individuals authorized, within the scope of their practice, to109 |
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| 138 | 138 | | provide mental health and behavioral health services to students via telehealth;110 |
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| 139 | 139 | | (iii) The legal requirements for parental consent for the provision of mental health111 |
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| 140 | 140 | | and behavioral health services to a minor via telehealth while such minor is at school112 |
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| 141 | 141 | | or during any school related function;113 |
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| 142 | 142 | | (iv) Measures necessary to protect the security of data transmitted during the114 |
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| 143 | 143 | | provision of telehealth;115 |
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| 144 | 144 | | (v) Measures necessary to protect the privacy of student data pursuant to Article 15116 |
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| 145 | 145 | | of this chapter and the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act117 |
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| 146 | 146 | | (FERPA), 20 U.S.C. Section 1232g and medical records pursuant to the federal118 |
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| 147 | 147 | | Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), P.L. 104-191; and119 23 LC 49 1045 |
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| 148 | 148 | | H. B. 320 |
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| 149 | 149 | | - 6 - |
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| 150 | 150 | | (vi) Potential liability for public schools and local school systems associated with the120 |
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| 151 | 151 | | provision of telehealth to students.121 |
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| 152 | 152 | | (c)(1)(5)(A) Each No later than December 31, 2023, each local school system shall122 |
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| 153 | 153 | | adopt a policy on student depression and suicide awareness and prevention. Such policies123 |
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| 154 | 154 | | shall be developed in consultation with school and community stakeholders, school124 |
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| 155 | 155 | | employed mental health professionals, and suicide prevention experts, and shall, at a125 |
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| 156 | 156 | | minimum, address procedures relating to depression awareness and intervention and126 |
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| 157 | 157 | | suicide awareness, prevention, intervention, and postvention.127 |
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| 158 | 158 | | (B) To assist local school systems in developing their own policies for student suicide128 |
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| 159 | 159 | | prevention, the Department of Education, in consultation with the Suicide Prevention129 |
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| 160 | 160 | | Program within the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities,130 |
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| 161 | 161 | | shall establish a model policy for use by local school systems in accordance with this131 |
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| 162 | 162 | | Code section.132 |
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| 163 | 163 | | (2) A local school system seeking to participate and receive funding under the grant133 |
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| 164 | 164 | | program provided for in paragraph (2) of subsection (a) shall submit an application to the134 |
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| 165 | 165 | | State School Superintendent, in accordance with application procedures and requirements135 |
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| 166 | 166 | | prescribed by the State Board of Education. An application submitted by a local school136 |
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| 167 | 167 | | system shall include, at a minimum:137 |
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| 168 | 168 | | (A) A description of the mental health screening program to be implemented by the138 |
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| 169 | 169 | | local school system and an explanation of how the local school system will make an139 |
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| 170 | 170 | | annual mental health screening available to each student in the grades six through 12;140 |
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| 171 | 171 | | (B) Details concerning the research based screening tool that will be used by the local141 |
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| 172 | 172 | | school system or whether the local school system will partner with an organization or142 |
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| 173 | 173 | | healthcare provider specializing in pediatric and adolescent mental health to conduct143 |
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| 174 | 174 | | the screenings;144 |
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| 175 | 175 | | (C) A request and justification for the amount of grant funding sought by the local145 |
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| 176 | 176 | | school system under the grant program;146 23 LC 49 1045 |
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| 177 | 177 | | H. B. 320 |
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| 178 | 178 | | - 7 - |
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| 179 | 179 | | (D) A description of how the grant funding will be used to further the purposes of the147 |
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| 180 | 180 | | mental health screening program, including hiring additional personnel, purchasing148 |
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| 181 | 181 | | materials, or contracting with outside entities;149 |
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| 182 | 182 | | (E) A description of how the mental health screenings will be conducted in a manner150 |
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| 183 | 183 | | that permits real-time evaluation of the screening results and same day intervention by151 |
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| 184 | 184 | | a licensed mental health professional if required based on the results of the screening;152 |
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| 185 | 185 | | (F) As applicable, the details of any partnership with an organization or provider153 |
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| 186 | 186 | | specializing in pediatric and adolescent mental health services, which shall include, but154 |
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| 187 | 187 | | not be limited to, the name of the organization or provider, the number of students to155 |
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| 188 | 188 | | be served by the organization or provider, the expected time frame to screen the156 |
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| 189 | 189 | | students, the costs associated with engaging in a partnership with the organization or157 |
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| 190 | 190 | | provider, and the location where the screenings will take place. A local school system158 |
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| 191 | 191 | | shall detail whether student health insurance information will be required under its159 |
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| 192 | 192 | | agreement with a partner organization or provider, how it will obtain that information,160 |
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| 193 | 193 | | and what accommodations will be made for uninsured or underinsured students and161 |
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| 194 | 194 | | uninsured and underinsured minor students whose parents or guardians have consented162 |
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| 195 | 195 | | to the depression screening;163 |
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| 196 | 196 | | (G) A description of how the local school system will ensure that the parent or164 |
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| 197 | 197 | | guardian of a student whose screening for depression detects an irregularity is notified165 |
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| 198 | 198 | | of such irregularity and how it will advise the parent or guardian of the services166 |
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| 199 | 199 | | available through a partner organization or provider or supply the parent or guardian167 |
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| 200 | 200 | | with resources to assist in the acquisition of the services of a healthcare professional in168 |
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| 201 | 201 | | order to obtain further evaluation and diagnosis; and169 |
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| 202 | 202 | | (H) A description of how the local school system will obtain written informed consent170 |
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| 203 | 203 | | from a minor student's parent or guardian prior to the screening;171 |
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| 204 | 204 | | (3) A local school system that receives an award under the grant program provided for172 |
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| 205 | 205 | | in paragraph (2) of subsection (a) of this Code section shall make available to each173 23 LC 49 1045 |
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| 206 | 206 | | H. B. 320 |
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| 207 | 207 | | - 8 - |
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| 208 | 208 | | student in the grades six through 12 an annual mental health screening which shall174 |
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| 209 | 209 | | include screening for depression and suicide risk. Each such local school system or175 |
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| 210 | 210 | | public school shall meet the following conditions when implementing its mental health176 |
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| 211 | 211 | | screening program:177 |
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| 212 | 212 | | (A) The local school system shall use a research based screening tool in its mental178 |
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| 213 | 213 | | health screening program conducted by a licensed mental health professional or through179 |
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| 214 | 214 | | a partnership with an organization or healthcare provider specializing in pediatric and180 |
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| 215 | 215 | | adolescent mental health to conduct the screenings. Nothing in this subparagraph shall181 |
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| 216 | 216 | | prohibit a local school system from using a self-administered screening tool as part of182 |
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| 217 | 217 | | the depression screening program;183 |
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| 218 | 218 | | (B) Mental health screenings shall be conducted in a manner that permits real-time184 |
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| 219 | 219 | | evaluation of the screening results and same day intervention by a licensed mental185 |
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| 220 | 220 | | health professional as indicated by the screening;186 |
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| 221 | 221 | | (C) The local school system shall ensure that mental health screenings are conducted187 |
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| 222 | 222 | | in a manner that accommodates students who are English language learners, students188 |
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| 223 | 223 | | with disabilities, and students with low reading proficiency when conducting the189 |
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| 224 | 224 | | screenings;190 |
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| 225 | 225 | | (D) Mental health screenings shall be conducted in a manner that ensures the privacy191 |
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| 226 | 226 | | of the student during the screening process and the confidentiality of the results,192 |
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| 227 | 227 | | consistent with state and federal laws applicable to the confidentiality of student records193 |
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| 228 | 228 | | and mental health records;194 |
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| 229 | 229 | | (E) The local school system shall obtain written informed consent from the minor195 |
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| 230 | 230 | | student's parent or guardian prior to such student's mental health screening; and196 |
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| 231 | 231 | | (F) The local school system shall forward data collected from the mental health197 |
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| 232 | 232 | | screenings to the Department of Education and to the Suicide Prevention Program198 |
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| 233 | 233 | | within the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities in a form199 |
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| 234 | 234 | | and manner to be determined by the Department of Education, provided that any data200 23 LC 49 1045 |
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| 235 | 235 | | H. B. 320 |
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| 236 | 236 | | - 9 - |
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| 237 | 237 | | forwarded shall be aggregated and shall not contain any identifying or confidential201 |
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| 238 | 238 | | information with regard to any individual.202 |
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| 239 | 239 | | (4) In the event that a local school system chooses to partner with an organization or203 |
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| 240 | 240 | | healthcare provider specializing in pediatric and adolescent mental health to conduct the204 |
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| 241 | 241 | | mental health screenings, the partner organization or provider may also provide mental205 |
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| 242 | 242 | | health services as deemed necessary by the organization or provider and as consented to206 |
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| 243 | 243 | | by a minor student's parent or guardian. A local school system partnering with an207 |
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| 244 | 244 | | organization or healthcare provider specializing in pediatric and adolescent mental health208 |
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| 245 | 245 | | may develop a form to obtain parental consent and student health insurance information209 |
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| 246 | 246 | | as necessary to satisfy the provisions of any partnership agreement.210 |
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| 247 | 247 | | (b)(d) No person shall have a cause of action for any loss or damage caused by any act or211 |
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| 248 | 248 | | omission resulting from the implementation of the provisions of this Code section or212 |
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| 249 | 249 | | resulting from any screening, training, or lack thereof, required by provided for in this213 |
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| 250 | 250 | | Code section.214 |
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| 251 | 251 | | (c)(e) The screenings and training, or lack thereof, required by the provisions of provided215 |
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| 252 | 252 | | for in this Code section shall not be construed to impose any specific duty of care.216 |
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| 253 | 253 | | (f) Nothing in this Code section shall be construed to affect a local school system's ability217 |
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| 254 | 254 | | to provide additional or supplemental services to a student as required by, or as consistent218 |
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| 255 | 255 | | with, any applicable provision of state or federal law."219 |
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| 256 | 256 | | SECTION 3.220 |
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| 257 | 257 | | All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.221 |
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