By: Brown H.B. No. 1615
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the administering of medications to children in certain
facilities; providing criminal penalties.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. This Act shall be known as Nathan's Law.
SECTION 2. Subchapter C, Chapter 42, Human Resources Code,
is amended by adding Section 42.065 to read as follows:
Sec. 42.065. ADMINISTERING MEDICATION. (a) In this
section, "medication" means a drug that may be obtained with or
without a prescription, excluding a topical ointment obtained
without a prescription.
(b) This section applies only to a day-care center, group
day-care home, before-school or after-school program, school-age
program, or family home regardless of whether the facility or
program is licensed, registered, or listed.
(c) A director, owner, operator, caretaker, employee, or
volunteer of a child-care facility subject to this section may not
administer a medication to a child unless:
(1) the child's parent or guardian has submitted to the
child-care facility a signed and dated document that authorizes the
facility to administer the medication for not longer than one year;
and
(2) the authorized medication:
(A) is administered as stated on the label
directions or as amended in writing by a physician; and
(B) is not expired.
(d) Notwithstanding Subsection (c)(1), a director, owner,
operator, caretaker, employee, or volunteer of a child-care
facility subject to this section may administer medication to a
child under this section without a signed authorization if the
child's parent or guardian submits to the child-care facility an
authorization in an electronic format that is capable of being
viewed and saved. An authorization under this subsection expires
on the first anniversary of the date the authorization is provided
to the child-care facility.
(e) This section does not apply to a person that administers
a medication to a child in a medical emergency to prevent the death
or serious bodily injury of the child if the medication is
administered as prescribed, directed, or intended.
(f) A person commits an offense if the person administers a
medication to a child in violation of this section. If conduct
constituting an offense under this section also constitutes an
offense under a section of the Penal Code, the actor may be
prosecuted under either section or both sections.
(g) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.