A new Texas law, Senate Bill 12 (SB 12), requires all parents to provide consent before a student can receive routine health-related services during the school day. This law applies to every student enrolled in public schools across the state.
What does SB 12 mean for your child?
With parent consent, students may receive routine health-related services from school counselors, school social workers, nurses and athletic trainers. Examples of these routine services include:
Basic health support such as first aid and injury evaluation
Support when students feel sick
Administration of over-the-counter and prescription medication in accordance with the law
Monitoring of chronic health conditions (e.g., asthma, diabetes)
Heat illness prevention and injury support for student athletes
Advise students and their parents on college, coursework designed to prepare students for college, and financial aid
Early mental health prevention and intervention
Vision, hearing, and scoliosis screenings
Under the influence assessment
Lice screening
Acanthosis screening
Support during illness or physical symptoms at school
Coordination of health services
A responsive services component to intervene on behalf of any student whose
immediate personal concerns or problems put the student’s continued educational,
career, personal, or social development at risk.
An individual planning system to guide a student as the student plans, monitors, and
manages the student’s own educational, career, personal, and social development.
System support to support the efforts of teachers, staff, parents, and other members of
the community in promoting the educational, career, personal, and social development
of students.
Building skills related to managing emotions, establishing and maintaining positive
relationships, and responsible decision-making;
Substance abuse prevention and intervention;
Suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention;
Grief-informed and trauma-informed practices;
Positive school climates, meaning the quality and character of school life, including
interpersonal relationships, teaching and learning practices, and organizational
structures, as experienced by students enrolled in the District, parents of those
students, and personnel employed by the District;
Positive behavior interventions and supports;
Positive youth development; and
Safe, supportive, and positive school climate.
What if you say no?
Without consent, schools cannot provide these services, and more, except in an emergency situation when immediate care is necessary to protect a child’s safety. Parents may update or withdraw consent at any time by submitting a written request to the campus.
What you need to do:
Parents are required to submit the Health-Related Services Consent Form for your student’s campus by September 1.
Providing consent ensures that students have access to the full range of health and support services available in schools.