Enrolled Bill Summary

House Bill 2202 amends the Education Code to allow a school district, on the basis of an identified need, to design a model for delivery of cooperative health care programs, including conventional health services and district-specific disease prevention programs, for students and families; establish a school-based health center at one or more campuses; and contract for provision of services at each center. The act requires written parental consent for a school-based health center to provide services to a student, either on an ongoing basis or limited to specific services on a single occasion, and requires the consenting adult and the center's staff jointly to identify any health-related concerns that may interfere with the student's well-being or school performance. A finding of need for mental health services also requires parental notification of and consent to a referral. The act lists categories of services that a center may provide but prohibits centers from using grant funds to provide reproductive services, counseling, or referrals; it also requires that services provided with grant funds must be provided by properly licensed, certified, or authorized professionals.

House Bill 2202 allows school boards to establish and appoint members to local advisory councils to make recommendations regarding the establishment of centers and to assist in ensuring that community values are reflected in each center's operation and health education programs. The majority of each council's members must be parents of students in the district, but its membership must also include representatives of different segments of the community.

House Bill 2202 provides for interagency cooperation in the establishment, operation, and funding of school-based centers, with specific provisions applying to centers in sparsely populated or medically underserved areas or communities to identify and coordinate with existing providers to preserve and protect existing health care systems and medical relationships in the area. It also requires the commissioner of public health to administer a grant program to help districts with center operation costs, but it limits the amount of grants, awarded through a competitive process, a district may receive to a maximum of $250,000 per biennium and requires districts to provide matching funds, which may come from any public or private source. The act requires the commissioner to report annually to the legislature on the efficacy of school-based center services and any increased academic benefits related to those services.

House Bill 2202 requires a school district's board of trustees to hold a public hearing before the district or a district school expands or changes the health care services available at a school. The act also provides that a parent or guardian is entitled to access a student's medical records held by the district and requires a district to provide a copy of those records when requested by the parent or guardian.