Dear Friends of the Diabetes Community,
We are delighted to announce the introduction of a new bill, AB 1802, into the California Legislature by Assembly Member Isadore Hall III (D-Compton) in support of children with diabetes attending California schools. Hall’s bill would establish a procedure by which a parent or guardian can designate a trained volunteer school employee to administer insulin to a child with diabetes in a public school, based on the medical instructions provided by the child’s physician. Read the press release.
Please take action! Join us in saying “thank you” to Assembly Member Hall for his steadfast commitment to seek legal clarity and deliver a solution that is safe, appropriate and provides a wide net of support to children living with diabetes. Send a letter to Assembly Member Hall expressing your gratitude and support and tell your story (even if you’ve already done it before) so it can be shared with other lawmakers.
Stay informed about AB 1802 as it moves forward, learn more about why this bill makes sense, and
sign up to receive email alerts at www.DiabetesInCASchools.com
Give children with diabetes a voice. Tell your stories. Help protect and preserve the human and civil rights of children with diabetes to receive appropriate care at school.
In Partnership,
Lisa Shenson & Jim Stone, Grassroots Co-Chairs
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
This is extremely dangerous and capricious! A lethal medication error just waiting to happen. Treat the hypos, send home or to 911 the Hyperglycemics…Only nurses, doctors, and trained family should administer potentially lethal insulin, Paramedics rarely. Will these medically uneducated counselors be covered by malpractice insurance. Doubtful.
The previous statement, outrages me. What is dangerous, is not treating our Type 1 children with insulin promptly. Insulin is a life sustaining medication for a Type 1. Type 1’s can die (and do), from diabetic ketoacidosis (untreated high blood glucose). It takes insulin (fast acting) approx 2.5 hours to begin to work. So, even with the great advances of modern medicine, a Type 1 child’s body, is still undergoing damage, waiting for the fast acting insulin to “kick in”. To add to the delay of insulin, is a child waiting for a school nurse to treat her high blood sugar, this delay is furthering the damage to her precious body. Many that are opposed to AB 1802, will not be witnessing the irrepairable damage done to my child’s body in 20 years, for having untreated high blood glucose. Malpractice insurance???? Can we discuss unnecessary suffering, dying of thirst, stomache pain, headache, body aches, urgent need to urinate, trouble concentrating. Let’s talk about the social impact of a small child waiting (and waiting) for a nurse to show up, so that they can then go and join their peers at snack or lunch? The horrendous damage to the small capillaries of her body-because of unnecessary delays in receiving a life sustaining medication. She will face the possiblity of blindness, kidney failure, heart failure, limb amputations, because of unnecessary delays. Hmmm? Malpractice Insurance, job security, nurse or volunteer school staff member that has been properly trained in diabetes care? Given any opportunity my daughter’s diabetes will destroy her body, every moment of every day – it does not stop because she has entered through the doors of her public school. I am taking my chances on a well trained school staff member that cares enough to volunteer. I will continue to support AB 1802