Existing law, the California Child Day Care Facilities Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of child daycare facilities by the State Department of Social Services. Under the act, “child daycare facility” is defined to mean a facility that provides nonmedical care to children under 18 years of age in need of personal services, supervision, or assistance essential for sustaining the activities of daily living or for the protection of the individual on less than a 24-hour basis. For purposes of the act, a child daycare facility includes a daycare center, an employer-sponsored childcare center, and a family daycare home. Under existing law, a violation of the act is a crime.

This bill would require the State Department of Social Services, in consultation with the State Department of Education, on or before July 1, 2024, to establish an anaphylactic policy that sets forth guidelines and procedures recommended for child daycare personnel to prevent a child from suffering from anaphylaxis and to be used during a medical emergency resulting from anaphylaxis. The bill would require the policy to be developed in consultation with specified individuals, including pediatric physicians and other health care providers with expertise in treating children with anaphylaxis. The bill would require the policy to include specified components, including a procedure and treatment plan for child daycare personnel responding to a child suffering from anaphylaxis and a training course for child daycare personnel for preventing, recognizing the symptoms of, and responding to anaphylaxis. The bill would require an anaphylactic policy for family childcare providers to be developed in consultation and coordination with the Joint Labor Management Committee established by the state and Child Care Providers United - California (CCPU) pursuant to a specified agreement between the state and CCPU. The bill would require training on the anaphylactic policy to be provided by the department’s Community Care Licensing Division in consultation with CCPU pursuant to that agreement, and any extension or renewal of that agreement, for all family childcare providers who wish to participate.

This bill would exempt child daycare personnel who provide, administer, or assist in the administration of epinephrine in compliance with the anaphylactic policy, as specified, from liability in a civil action or from criminal prosecution for the person’s acts or omissions in administering the epinephrine. Under the bill, these exemptions would not apply in the case of gross negligence or willful or wanton misconduct. The bill would require the State Department of Social Services to create informational materials detailing the anaphylactic policy and would require the State Department of Social Services and the State Department of Education, on or before September 1, 2024, to post the informational materials on each of the departments’ internet websites. The bill would authorize a child daycare facility to implement the anaphylactic policy on or before January 1, 2025, and would, on and after January 1, 2025, require a child daycare facility that adopts the anaphylactic policy to notify the parent or guardian of a child of the policy upon enrollment.

Because a willful or repeated violation of the bill by a child daycare facility would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.