2006 Code of Virginia § 32.1-46 - Immunization of patients against certain diseases

32.1-46. Immunization of patients against certain diseases.

A. The parent, guardian or person standing in loco parentis of each childwithin this Commonwealth shall cause such child to be immunized in accordancewith the Immunization Schedule developed and published by the Centers forDisease Control and Prevention (CDC), Advisory Committee on ImmunizationPractices (ACIP), the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), and the AmericanAcademy of Family Physicians (AAFP). The required immunizations forattendance at a public or private elementary, middle or secondary school,child care center, nursery school, family day care home or developmentalcenter shall be those set forth in the State Board of Health Regulations forthe Immunization of School Children. The Board's regulations shall at aminimum require:

1. A minimum of three properly spaced doses of hepatitis B vaccine (HepB).

2. A minimum of three or more properly spaced doses of diphtheria toxoid. Onedose shall be administered on or after the fourth birthday. A booster doseshall be administered prior to entering the sixth grade if at least fiveyears have passed since the last dose of diphtheria toxoid.

3. A minimum of three or more properly spaced doses of tetanus toxoid. Onedose shall be administered on or after the fourth birthday. A booster dose ofTdap vaccine shall be administered prior to entering the sixth grade if atleast five years have passed since the last dose of tetanus toxoid.

4. A minimum of three or more properly spaced doses of acellular pertussisvaccine. One dose shall be administered on or after the fourth birthday. Abooster dose shall be administered prior to entry into the sixth grade if atleast five years have passed since the last dose of pertussis vaccine.

5. Two or three primary doses of Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) vaccine,depending on the manufacturer, for children up to 60 months of age.

6. Two properly spaced doses of live attenuated measles (rubeola) vaccine.The first dose shall be administered at age 12 months or older.

7. One dose of live attenuated rubella vaccine shall be administered at age12 months or older.

8. One dose of live attenuated mumps vaccine shall be administered at age 12months or older.

9. All susceptible children born on and after January 1, 1997, shall berequired to have one dose of varicella vaccine on or after 12 months.

10. Three or more properly spaced doses of oral polio vaccine (OPV) orinactivated polio vaccine (IPV). One dose shall be administered on or afterthe fourth birthday. A fourth dose shall be required if the three doseprimary series consisted of a combination of OPV and IPV.

11. Two to four doses, dependent on age at first dose, of properly spacedpneumococcal 7-valent conjugate (PVC) vaccine for children less than twoyears of age.

The parent, guardian or person standing in loco parentis may have such childimmunized by a physician or registered nurse or may present the child to theappropriate local health department, which shall administer the vaccinesrequired by the State Board of Health Regulations for the Immunization ofSchool Children without charge.

B. A physician, registered nurse or local health department administering avaccine required by this section shall provide to the person who presents thechild for immunizations a certificate that shall state the diseases for whichthe child has been immunized, the numbers of doses given, the dates whenadministered and any further immunizations indicated.

C. The vaccines required by this section shall meet the standards prescribedin, and be administered in accordance with, regulations of the Board.

D. The provisions of this section shall not apply if:

1. The parent or guardian of the child objects thereto on the grounds thatthe administration of immunizing agents conflicts with his religious tenetsor practices, unless an emergency or epidemic of disease has been declared bythe Board, or

2. The parent or guardian presents a statement from a physician licensed topractice medicine in Virginia, or a licensed nurse practitioner, that statesthat the physical condition of the child is such that the administration ofone or more of the required immunizing agents would be detrimental to thehealth of the child.

E. For the purpose of protecting the public health by ensuring that eachchild receives age-appropriate immunizations, any physician, physicianassistant, nurse practitioner, licensed institutional health care provider,local or district health department, the Virginia Immunization InformationSystem, and the Department of Health may share immunization and patientlocator information without parental authorization, including, but notlimited to, the month, day, and year of each administered immunization; thepatient's name, address, telephone number, birth date, and social securitynumber; and the parents' names. The immunization information; the patient'sname, address, telephone number, birth date, and social security number; andthe parents' names shall be confidential and shall only be shared for thepurposes set out in this subsection.

F. The State Board of Health shall review this section annually and makerecommendations for revision by September 1 to the Governor, the GeneralAssembly, and the Joint Commission on Health Care.

(Code 1950, 32-57.1; 1968, c. 592; 1972, c. 558; 1979, c. 711; 1980, c.410; 1989, c. 382; 1991, c. 133; 1992, cc. 127, 166; 1994, c. 62; 1995, cc.729, 742; 1996, cc. 67, 533; 1999, cc. 632, 676, 738; 2000, c. 476; 2004, c.855; 2005, cc. 643, 684; 2006, cc. 364, 396, 716.)