Soon It May Become Illegal For School Officials To Hide Situations Where Ticks Are Found On Students
Soon It May Become Illegal For School Officials To Hide Situations Where Ticks Are Found On Students
You may think that school in the United States are legally obligated to report situations involving ticks found on the skin of students to parents. Sadly, you would be wrong. Every once in a while ticks are found on students while they are attending school. Obviously ticks are mostly found on children during school hours as a result of taking part in outdoor activities while attending school. This issue may not seem like a big deal to some Americans, but in regions of the US where ticks are plentiful, it is by no means rare to find ticks on children during school hours. Currently members of the Senate Education Committee are reviewing proposed legislation that would make it a crime for school officials to avoid notifying parents when ticks are found on students.
Schools may soon have to send parents written notification of situations involving ticks found on their children during school hours. Of course, not all ticks carry diseases, but in some regions of the northeast US, lyme-carrying ticks are abundant. Lyme disease can be treated successfully if the disease is medically addressed in a timely manner. If school officials do not have to notify parents of situations involving ticks on their children, then months could pass before a tick-related illness is recognized. However, if the bill passes, parents will be allowed plenty of time to medically address the presence of ticks found on their children’s skin. This law is actually beneficial to school officials as legally reporting tick-related events to parents relieves schools of the liability of tick-borne disease in young students. Once parents receive written notification, the responsibility to seek treatment rests on them. Pennsylvania is currently leading the nation in lyme-infection rates. Given the amount of time children spend outside during school hours, the proposed bill could eventually become a sensible law.
Have you or anyone you have known ever sustained an insect or arachnid related injury while attending school?
