By: Sheffield, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Zaffirini) H.B. No. 2171
(In the Senate - Received from the House May 5, 2015;
May 7, 2015, read first time and referred to Committee on Health
and Human Services; May 22, 2015, reported favorably by the
following vote: Yeas 7, Nays 2; May 22, 2015, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
COMMITTEE VOTE
YeaNayAbsentPNV
SchwertnerX
KolkhorstX
CampbellX
EstesX
PerryX
RodrÃguezX
TaylorofCollinX
UrestiX
ZaffiriniX
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to information maintained in the immunization registry
with the consent of an individual after the individual becomes an
adult.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 161.007, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by amending Subsections (a-1), (a-2), (b), and (e) and
adding Subsections (a-4), (a-5), and (a-6), and amending Subsection
(a-3), as amended by S.B. 219, Acts of the 84th Legislature, Regular
Session, 2015, to read as follows:
(a-1) The written or electronic consent required by
Subsection (a)(3) for an individual younger than 18 years of age is
required to be obtained only one time. The written or electronic
consent of the individual's parent, managing conservator, or
guardian must be submitted to the department before the
individual's 18th birthday. After consent is submitted, the
individual's immunization information may be included in the
registry [The consent is valid] until the individual becomes 26
[18] years of age unless the consent is withdrawn in writing or
electronically, or renewed after the individual's 18th birthday as
provided by Subsection (a-2). A parent, managing conservator, or
guardian of a minor may provide the consent by using an electronic
signature on the minor's birth certificate.
(a-2) The written or electronic consent required by
Subsection (a)(3) for an individual who is 18 years of age or older
is required to be obtained only one time and must be received from
the individual before the information may be released. An
individual's legally authorized representative or the individual,
after the individual has attained 18 years of age, may consent in
writing or electronically for the individual's information to
remain in the registry [after the individual's 18th birthday and
for the individual's subsequent immunizations to be included in the
registry]. [The written or electronic consent of the minor's
legally authorized representative as described by Section
161.0001(1-c)(A) must be submitted to the department before the
individual's 18th birthday. The written or electronic consent of
the individual or the individual's legally authorized
representative as described by Section 161.0001(1-c)(B) or (C) must
be submitted to the department not later than the individual's 19th
birthday.] The consent of the representative or individual is valid
until the individual or the individual's legally authorized
representative withdraws consent in writing or electronically. The
department may not include in the registry the immunization
information of an individual who is 26 [18] years of age or older
until written or electronic consent has been obtained as provided
by this subsection. The department shall coordinate with the Texas
Education Agency to distribute materials described in Section
161.0095(a)(2) to students and parents through local school
districts.
(a-3) The executive commissioner by rule shall develop
guidelines and procedures for obtaining consent from an individual
after the individual's 18th birthday, including procedures for
retaining immunization information in a separate database that is
inaccessible by any person other than the department during the
eight-year [one-year] period during which an individual who is 18
years of age or older [an 18-year-old] may consent to inclusion in
the registry under Subsection (a-2).
(a-4) After an individual's 18th birthday, the department
shall make a reasonable effort to provide notice to an individual
whose immunization information is included in the registry with
consent that was provided by a parent, managing conservator, or
guardian under Subsection (a-1). The reasonable effort shall
include at least two attempts by the department to provide the
notice required by this subsection by telephone or e-mail, by
regular mail to the individual's last known address, or by general
outreach efforts through the individual's health care provider,
school district, or institution of higher education. The notice
must inform the individual that the individual's immunization
records will be included in the registry until the date of the
individual's 26th birthday unless the individual or the
individual's legally authorized representative:
(1) withdraws consent in writing or electronically
before that date; or
(2) provides consent for the records to continue to be
included in the registry as provided by Subsection (a-2).
(a-5) After an individual's 25th birthday, the department
shall make a reasonable effort to provide notice to an individual
whose immunization information is included in the registry with
consent that was provided under Subsection (a-1) and has not been
renewed under Subsection (a-2). The reasonable effort shall
include at least two attempts by the department to provide the
notice required by this subsection by telephone or e-mail, by
regular mail to the individual's last known address, or by general
outreach efforts through the individual's health care provider or
institution of higher education. The notice must inform the
individual that the individual's immunization records will be
included in the immunization registry until the individual's 26th
birthday unless the individual or the individual's legally
authorized representative renews consent as provided by Subsection
(a-2).
(a-6) The department shall make a reasonable effort to
obtain current contact information for written or electronic
notices sent by the department under Subsection (a-5) that are
returned due to incorrect address information.
(b) Except as provided by Section 161.0071, the
immunization registry must contain information on the immunization
history that is obtained by the department under:
(1) this section of each individual for whom consent
has been obtained in accordance with guidelines adopted under
Subsection (a) [or (a-3), as applicable];
(2) Section 161.00705 of persons immunized to prepare
for or in response to a declared disaster, public health emergency,
terrorist attack, hostile military or paramilitary action, or
extraordinary law enforcement emergency;
(3) Section 161.00706 of first responders or their
immediate family members; and
(4) Section 161.00735 of persons evacuated or
relocated to this state because of a disaster.
(e) The department shall provide notice to a health care
provider that submits an immunization history for an individual for
whom consent cannot be verified. The notice shall contain
instructions for obtaining consent in accordance with guidelines
adopted under Subsection [Subsections] (a) [and (a-3)] and
resubmitting the immunization history to the department.
SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act to Section
161.007, Health and Safety Code, apply only to immunization
information in the immunization registry of a person who turns 18
years of age on or after the effective date of this Act. The
immunization information in the immunization registry of a person
who turns 18 years of age before the effective date of this Act is
governed by the law in effect immediately before that date, and that
law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.
* * * * *