W. Va. Code R. § 126-51-4

Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 50, December 13, 2024

Section 126-51-4 - Definitions

4.1. Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). Reports to the Director of the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and consists of medical and public health experts who develop recommendations regarding the use of vaccines to control diseases in the United States.

4.2. American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). National organization of pediatricians, founded in 1930, committed to attaining optimal physical, mental, and social health and well-being for all infants, children, adolescents, and young adults.

4.3. Bureau for Public Health (BPH). Division of West Virginia Department of Health (WVDH) that functions as the agency designated to oversee the state's health system designed to deliver best practices for health and wellness to the citizens of West Virginia.

4.4. Casual Contact. Level of contact at which a person is not subject to contracting a communicable disease from another person.

4.5. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). One of the eleven major divisions of the United States Department of Health and Human Services operating as the principal agency in the United States government responsible for protecting the health and safety of all Americans and leading public health efforts to prevent and control infectious and chronic diseases, injuries, workplace hazards, disabilities, and environmental health threats.

4.6. Commissioner (Commissioner) of BPH. WVDH official who serves as the State Health Officer, or designee, as defined in W. Va. Code §16-1-2.

4.7. Communicable Disease. Illness caused by an infectious agent, or its toxins, that occurs through the direct or indirect transmission of the infectious agent from its products of an infected individual.

4.8. HealthCheck. Component of the West Virginia's Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment Program (EPSDT) for child preventive health relating to Medicaid for children under 21 years old. An annual comprehensive examination is recommended for all children ages 3 to 20 years old and more frequently if less than three years old. HealthCheck meets vision, hearing, developmental, speech, language, oral health, or other comprehensive health screening requirements. The HealthCheck screening form is the preferred documentation method for licensed health care providers to record screenings; however, documentation formats may vary.

4.9. Health or Safety Emergency Event Disclosure. Situation that presents imminent danger, a threat to students and/or community members, or requires an immediate need for information to avert or diffuse serious threats to the safety or health of a student or other persons. Health or safety emergency provisions of 20 U.S.C. §1232g; The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1988 (FERPA), and FERPA: Final Regulations Part II, 34 CFR Part 99, permit the disclosure of personally identifiable information from students' education records to state health officials relative to an outbreak of a communicable disease.

4.10. Immunization Officer. Physician appointed and employed by the Commissioner to make determinations upon request for an exemption to the compulsory immunization requirements pursuant to W. Va. Code §16-3-4.

4.11. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Division of the United States Department of Labor that provides standards and guidelines for America's workers' health and safety by establishing and enforcing standards; providing training, outreach, and education; establishing partnerships; and encouraging the improvement of workplace safety and health.

4.12. Oral Health Examination. Evaluation to determine the students' oral health performed, recorded, and documented by a dentist or dental hygienist.

4.13. Oral Health Program (OHP). Program managed by WVDH, within the BPH, designed to promote and improve the oral health of West Virginia citizens by providing preventive education, improving access to oral health care, and monitoring the oral health status of citizens.

4.14. School Nurse. Registered Nurse licensed by the West Virginia Board of Registered Professional Nurses, established pursuant to W. Va. Code §30-7-1, et seq., who meets the requirements for certification contained in W. Va. 126CSR136, Policy 5202, Minimum Requirements for the Licensure of Professional/Paraprofessional Personnel and Advanced Salary Classifications. The county board of education or the county health department shall employ the school nurse pursuant to W. Va. Code §18-5-22.

4.15. Standard/Universal Precautions. Safeguards applicable to the care of all students and school employees irrespective of their disease. Universal Precautions is a standard set of guidelines established to prevent the transmission of bloodborne pathogens from exposure to blood and all body fluids in situations where it is not easy to differentiate between body fluids.

4.16. Student. For purposes of this policy, an individual who attends classes or participates in extracurricular activities or programs operated by a West Virginia public school.

4.17. West Virginia Department of Health (WVDH). Lead public health agency responsible for providing a wide range of necessary health and life-saving services and information to individuals and communities in West Virginia.

4.18. West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission (WVSSAC). Private, voluntary, non-profit organization comprised of the principals or designees of West Virginia public and private secondary schools who have elected to delegate the control, supervision, and regulation of their interscholastic, band, and robotics activities to the Commission.

4.19. West Virginia Statewide Immunization Information System (WVSIIS). Statewide computerized data system for reporting and tracking vaccine administration. The system consolidates individuals' immunization records, calibrates and forecasts recommended vaccinations, generates reminder notices for overdue immunizations, identifies improper vaccine administrations, conducts inventory management and systematic accountability, and provides general immunization practice management functions. Health care providers are required to report all administrations of vaccines pursuant to W. Va. Code §16-3-4 and BPH rules W. Va. 64CSR7, Reportable Diseases, Events and Conditions (W. Va. 64SCR7), and W. Va. 64CSR95, Immunization Requirements and Recommendations for Children Attending School and Enrolled in State-Regulated Health Care (W. Va. 64CSR95), for documentation in this system.

W. Va. Code R. § 126-51-4