Connecticut Seal

General Assembly

Amendment

 

February Session, 2010

LCO No. 4510

   
 

*HB0530604510HDO*

Offered by:

 

REP. RITTER, 38th Dist.

REP. BYE, 19th Dist.

REP. BOUKUS, 22nd Dist.

SEN. HARRIS, 5th Dist.

 

To: Subst. House Bill No. 5306

File No. 319

Cal. No. 174

Strike everything after the enacting clause and substitute the following in lieu thereof:

"Section 1. Section 19a-79 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):

(a) The Commissioner of Public Health shall adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, to carry out the purposes of sections 19a-77 to 19a-80, inclusive, and 19a-82 to 19a-87, inclusive, and to assure that child day care centers and group day care homes shall meet the health, educational and social needs of children utilizing such child day care centers and group day care homes. Such regulations shall (1) specify that before being permitted to attend any child day care center or group day care home, each child shall be protected as age-appropriate by adequate immunization against diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, poliomyelitis, measles, mumps, rubella, hemophilus influenzae type B and any other vaccine required by the schedule of active immunization adopted pursuant to section 19a-7f, including appropriate exemptions for children for whom such immunization is medically contraindicated and for children whose parents object to such immunization on religious grounds, (2) specify conditions under which child day care center directors and teachers and group day care home providers may administer tests to monitor glucose levels in a child with diagnosed diabetes mellitus, and administer medicinal preparations, including controlled drugs specified in the regulations by the commissioner, to a child receiving child day care services at such child day care center or group day care home pursuant to the written order of a physician licensed to practice medicine or a dentist licensed to practice dental medicine in this or another state, or an advanced practice registered nurse licensed to prescribe in accordance with section 20-94a, or a physician assistant licensed to prescribe in accordance with section 20-12d, and the written authorization of a parent or guardian of such child, (3) specify that an operator of a child day care center or group day care home, licensed before January 1, 1986, or an operator who receives a license after January 1, 1986, for a facility licensed prior to January 1, 1986, shall provide a minimum of thirty square feet per child of total indoor usable space, free of furniture except that needed for the children's purposes, exclusive of toilet rooms, bathrooms, coatrooms, kitchens, halls, isolation room or other rooms used for purposes other than the activities of the children, (4) specify that a child day care center or group day care home licensed after January 1, 1986, shall provide thirty-five square feet per child of total indoor usable space, (5) establish appropriate child day care center staffing requirements for employees certified in cardiopulmonary resuscitation by the American Red Cross, the American Heart Association, the National Safety Council, American Safety and Health Institute or Medic First Aid International, Inc. , (6) specify that on and after January 1, 2003, a child day care center or group day care home (A) shall not deny services to a child on the basis of a child's known or suspected allergy or because a child has a prescription for an automatic prefilled cartridge injector or similar automatic injectable equipment used to treat an allergic reaction, or for injectable equipment used to administer glucagon, (B) shall, not later than three weeks after such child's enrollment in such a center or home, have staff trained in the use of such equipment on-site during all hours when such a child is on-site, (C) shall require such child's parent or guardian to provide the injector or injectable equipment and a copy of the prescription for such medication and injector or injectable equipment upon enrollment of such child, and (D) shall require a parent or guardian enrolling such a child to replace such medication and equipment prior to its expiration date, and (7) specify that on and after January 1, 2005, a child day care center or group day care home (A) shall not deny services to a child on the basis of a child's diagnosis of asthma or because a child has a prescription for an inhalant medication to treat asthma, and (B) shall, not later than three weeks after such child's enrollment in such a center or home, have staff trained in the administration of such medication on-site during all hours when such a child is on-site, and (8) establish physical plant requirements for licensed child day care centers and licensed group day care homes that exclusively serve school-age children. When establishing such requirements, the department shall give consideration to child day care centers and group day care homes that are located in private or public school buildings. With respect to this subdivision only, the commissioner shall implement policies and procedures necessary to implement the physical plant requirements established pursuant to this subdivision while in the process of adopting such policies and procedures in regulation form. Until replaced by policies and procedures implemented pursuant to this subdivision, any physical plant requirement specified in the department's regulations that is generally applicable to child day care centers and group day care homes shall continue to be applicable to such centers and group day care homes that exclusively serve school-age children. The commissioner shall print notice of the intent to adopt regulations pursuant to this subdivision in the Connecticut Law Journal not later than twenty days after the date of implementation of such policies and procedures. Policies and procedures implemented pursuant to this subdivision shall be valid until the time final regulations are adopted.

(b) The Commissioner of Public Health may adopt regulations, pursuant to chapter 54, to establish civil penalties of not more than one hundred dollars per day for each day of violation and other disciplinary remedies that may be imposed, following a contested-case hearing, upon the holder of a license issued under section 19a-80 to operate a child day care center or group day care home or upon the holder of a license issued under section 19a-87b to operate a family day care home.

(c) The Commissioner of Public Health shall exempt Montessori schools accredited by the American Montessori Society or the Association Montessori Internationale from any provision in regulations adopted pursuant to subsection (a) of this section which sets requirements on group size or child to staff ratios or the provision of cots.

[(d) Any child day care center or group day care home that operates in a public school building and serves exclusively school-age children may apply for a variance to the physical plant requirements adopted as regulations pursuant to subsection (a) of this section on a form and in the manner prescribed by the Commissioner of Public Health. The commissioner may not grant a variance under this subsection unless (1) the operator of a child day care center or group day care home provides documentation to the commissioner that the intent of the specific requirement or requirements affected by the variance will be satisfactorily achieved in a manner other than that prescribed by the regulations, and (2) the child day care center or group day care home and the Department of Public Health enter into a written agreement specifying the physical plant requirement or requirements affected by the variance, the duration of the variance and the terms under which the variance is granted. If a child day care center or group day care home fails to comply with the terms of such written agreement, the agreement and the variance shall be subject to immediate cancellation. Any operator of a child day care center or group day care home who is granted a variance under this section shall post such variance in close proximity to the operator's license and, at the time of enrollment of any child in the child day care center or group day care home, and annually thereafter, notify the child's parents or guardians of such variance. Such notification shall include the specific physical plant requirement or requirements for which the variance has been granted and an explanation of how the child day care center or group day care home will achieve the intent of the specific requirement or requirements affected by the variance in a manner that protects the health and safety of the children enrolled in the child day care center or group day care home. ]"

This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:

Section 1

from passage

19a-79