A1424

An Act concerning pediatric Lyme screening and supplementing Title 26 of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the “Lyme Screening Act.”

2. As used in this act:

“Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Health.

“Department” means the Department of Health.

“Lyme” means a bacterial infection which is spread by certain ticks.

“Standardized Lyme screening checklist” means a brief set of questions developed by the Department of Health to assess risk of Lyme exposure and symptoms.

“Well-child visit” means a preventive child wellness examination during which a child’s health care provider conducts a physical examination, developmental assessment, and administers recommended immunizations.

3. a. A health care facility that serves children and is licensed pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.), and any other agency or program that serves children and is designated by the Commissioner of Health to perform well-child visits, shall perform a Lyme screening on each child that the facility, agency, or program serves, unless the facility, agency, or program has knowledge that the child has already undergone Lyme screening.

b. The Department of Health, in coordination with appropriate State agencies, shall develop a standardized Lyme screening checklist to be used by licensed health care practitioners who provide pediatric well-child care in this State. Practitioners shall administer the standardized Lyme screening checklist at the periodic intervals adopted by the department and consistent with recognized pediatric guidelines.

c. Each health care provider who conducts a well-child visit, or a symptom-related visit for fever, fatigue, rash, joint pain, or headache occurring between April 1 and October 31 of each year, shall administer the standardized Lyme screening checklist to determine if the child has had any known recent tick exposure or is experiencing fatigue, joint pain, fever, rash, or headaches.

d. The provider shall document the child’s responses in the patient’s medical record. If the responses or clinical findings indicate potential risk for Lyme, the provider shall either:

(1) order Lyme testing in accordance with department guidelines; or

(2) refer the patient for further evaluation and testing as clinically appropriate.

4. The State Board of Medical Examiners shall:

(1) require that the number of credits of continuing medical education required of each person licensed as a physician, as a condition of biennial registration pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1971, c.236 (C.45:9-6.1), include one mandatory credit of educational programs or topics concerning Lyme. The continuing medical education requirement in this subsection shall be subject to the provisions of section 10 of P.L.2001, c.307 (C.45:9-7.1); and

(2) adopt rules and regulations if necessary to effectuate the purposes of this section pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.).

5. a. The mandatory credit of educational programs and topics concerning Lyme established in section 4 of this act shall include training modules on:

(1) preventive measures and available treatments;

(2) health risks and complications of pediatric Lyme;

(3) best practices for screening, diagnosis, and clinical management of Lyme in children; and

(4) effective communication strategies for discussing Lyme prevention, symptoms, and follow-up care with parents and guardians.

b. Training required under this section shall be made available through a variety of formats to ensure accessibility for all physicians and pediatric health care providers, including online courses, webinars, workshops, and in-person seminars. These options shall allow providers to complete the required training at their own pace and according to their schedules.

c. Physicians and other licensed health care providers shall receive continuing medical education credits for completion of the Lyme education modules, which shall count toward their required continuing medical education hours for license renewal.

6. This act shall take effect the first day of the sixth month following enactment, except that the Department of Health may take any anticipatory administrative action necessary for its timely implementation.

STATEMENT

This bill creates the “Lyme Screening Act.”

Under the bill, a health care facility that serves children and is licensed pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.), and any other agency or program that serves children and is designated by the Commissioner of Health to perform well-child visits, is to perform a Lyme screening on each child that the facility, agency, or program serves, unless the facility, agency, or program has knowledge that the child has already undergone Lyme screening. The Department of Health, in coordination with appropriate State agencies, is to develop a standardized Lyme screening checklist to be used by licensed health care practitioners who provide pediatric well-child care in this State. Practitioners are to administer the standardized Lyme screening checklist at the periodic intervals adopted by the department and consistent with recognized pediatric guidelines. Each health care provider who conducts a well-child visit, or a symptom-related visit for fever, fatigue, rash, joint pain, or headache occurring between April 1 and October 31 of each year, is to administer the standardized Lyme screening checklist to determine if the child has had any known recent tick exposure or is experiencing fatigue, joint pain, fever, rash, or headaches.

Under this bill, the State Board of Medical Examiners is to require that the number of credits of continuing medical education required of each person licensed as a physician, as a condition of biennial registration pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1971, c.236 (C.45:9-6.1), include one mandatory credit of educational programs or topics concerning Lyme.

The bill provides that the mandatory credit of educational programs and topics concerning Lyme is to include training modules on preventive measures and available treatments; health risks and complications of pediatric Lyme; best practices for screening, diagnosis, and clinical management of Lyme in children; and effective communication strategies for discussing Lyme prevention, symptoms, and follow-up care with parents and guardians.

Under this bill, upon completion of the Lyme education modules, physicians are to receive continuing medical education credits which will count toward their required continuing medical education hours for license renewal. These credits are to count toward the total continuing medical education hours required, which includes a focus on patient safety, medical ethics, and other essential medical topics.