Part 1. DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES
Chapter 97. COMMUNICABLE DISEASES
Subchapter A. CONTROL OF COMMUNICABLE DISEASES
The Executive Commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission (commission), on behalf of the Department of State Health Services (department), adopts amendments to §§97.1 - 97.11, the repeal of §97.12 and §97.13, and new §97.12 and §97.13 concerning control of communicable diseases. The amendments to §§97.3 - 97.5, 97.7, and 97.9 are adopted with changes to the proposed text as published in the November 17, 2006, issue of the Texas Register (31 TexReg 9437). The amendments to §§97.1, 97.2, 97.6, 97.8, 97.10 and 97.11, the repeal of §97.12 and §97.13, and new §97.12 and §97.13 are adopted without changes and, therefore, the sections will not be republished.
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
The amendments, repeal and new sections are necessary to comply with Health and Safety Code, Chapter 81. The amendments, repeal and new sections will enable the reporting sources to more clearly identify the conditions and diseases that must be reported, define the minimal reportable information on these conditions and diseases, and describe the procedures for reporting. The amendments adjust the list of reportable diseases to include diseases and conditions of concern to public health. The amendments also add language on the investigation and control of communicable diseases that are authorized by Health and Safety Code, Chapter 81.
Government Code, §2001.039, requires that each state agency review and consider for readoption each rule adopted by that agency pursuant to the Government Code, Chapter 2001 (Administrative Procedure Act). Sections 97.1 - 97.13 have been reviewed and the department has determined that reasons for adopting the sections continue to exist because rules on this subject are needed.
SECTION-BY-SECTION SUMMARY
Amendments to §97.1 update legacy agency references, update definitions by adding, deleting, and revising text as necessary for clarity. Amendments to §97.2 add a reference to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Amendments to §97.3 update legacy agency references, add a website for accessing a summary list of notifiable conditions, update legacy agency references, change the scope of hepatitis B and C notifications, add influenza-associated pediatric mortality, leishmaniasis, Taenia solium, Vancomycin-intermediate resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VISA), Vancomycin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA), and West Nile fever to the notifiable conditions list, update diseases requiring submission of specimens to Department of State Health Services laboratory. Amendments to §97.4 update legacy agency references, and changes reporting time frames for perinatal hepatitis B, pertussis, tularemia and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Amendments to §97.5 update legacy agency references, where to report a disease or isolate, and where to submit an isolate. Amendments to §97.6 update legacy agency references, provide a toll-free telephone number for reporting diseases to the department by local health authorities and regional directors. Amendments to §97.7 updates guidance for exclusion from child-care facilities and schools. Amendments to §97.8 update legacy agency references. Amendments to §97.9 add language regarding application of control measures to private and common carriers as required by Health and Safety Code, §81.086(b). Amendments to §97.10 update legacy agency references and clarify existing language. Amendments to §97.11 add persons, as required by legislation, who need to or may be notified by hospitals if they may have been exposed to a communicable disease.
New §97.12 is the renumbered §97.13, and new §97.13 is the renumbered §97.12 moved for better flow of the rules and reorganized for clarity. In the new §97.12, the definition of correctional officer is changed to include volunteers and others involved in a facility's operations. New §97.13 adds avian influenza, hantavirus, SARS and smallpox to diseases that require tagging of body upon death. All of Subchapter A includes updates to names, references, and processes to reflect post-consolidation operations.
COMMENTS
The department, on behalf of the commission, has reviewed and prepared responses to the comments received regarding the proposed rules during the comment period, which the commission has reviewed and accepts. The commenters were individuals from the following organizations: Baylor College of Medicine, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Harris County Public Health and Environmental Services and other local health jurisdictions, Harris Methodist Southwest Hospital, Laboratory Corporation of America, Quest Diagnostics and public health laboratories located in various cities. The commenters were not against the rules in their entirety; however, the commenters suggested recommendations for change as discussed in the summary of comments.
Comment: Concerning the readmission criteria of "gastroenteritis" in §97.7(a)(8), one commenter requested that the phrase "without the use of diarrhea suppressing medications" be added.
Response: The commission agrees and the phrase was added to read, "gastroenteritis-exclude until diarrhea subsides without the use of diarrhea suppressing medications."
Comment: Concerning §97.3(a)(4), several commenters requested adding tuberculosis (disease caused by " Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex") to the list of diseases requiring submission of cultures. The commenters pointed out the difference in requiring submission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (one particular species of Mycobacterium that cause tuberuculosis) compared with requiring submission of " Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex" (a group of four Mycobacterium species that cause human tuberculosis).
Response: The commission agrees and has added "tuberculosis" to the list of diseases requiring submission of cultures in §§97.3(a)(4), 97.4(a)(6), and 97.5(a)(2)(D). Specifically, the wording of the rules will require submission of " Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex" to clarify what species of Mycobacterium would require submission of cultures.
Comment: Concerning §97.3(a)(2), several commenters expressed confusion with the reporting of encephalitis or meningitis caused by various mosquitoborne viruses and the reporting of febrile illnesses caused by the same viruses. The commenters suggested the addition of arboviral infections caused by five viruses to the list of notifiable conditions. These five viruses include "California serogroup, Eastern equine encephalitis, Powassan, St. Louis encephalitis, and West equine encephalitis." The commenters also suggested deleting "West Nile fever" as a reportable condition but adding "West Nile virus" to the list of arboviral infections to be reported.
Response: The commission agrees and has added arborviral infections caused by "California serogroup, Eastern equine encephalitis, Powassan, St. Louis encephalitis, West equine encephalitis, and West Nile viruses as" reportable conditions.
Comment: Concerning §97.4, two commenters requested changing influenza-associated pediatric mortality from a condition to be reported "within one week" to a condition to be reported "within one working day."
Response: The commission agrees and changed this condition to be reported "within one working day."
Comment: Concerning §97.4(a)(5), one commenter requested changing Escherichia coli enterohemorrhagic infection, hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) and mumps from conditions reported within one week to conditions reported immediately.
Response: These conditions, and many others, are of public health importance; however, the commission disagrees because the current language for reporting within one week is sufficient to address appropriate disease control measures. No change was made to the rule as a result of this comment.
Comment: Concerning §97.13, one commenter requested requiring a tag to be affixed on the body if the person had avian influenza, hantavirus, SARS or smallpox at the time of death.
Response: The commission disagrees adding these four diseases that require tagging because the language currently exists in §97.13(c). No change was made to the rules as a result of this comment.
Due to comments, various words were added and deleted to improve the sentence structure in §§97.3(a) and 97.9.
LEGAL CERTIFICATION
The Department of State Health Services, Deputy General Counsel, Linda Wiegman, certifies that the rules, as adopted, have been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agencies' legal authority.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY
The amendments and new sections are adopted under the Health and Safety Code, §81.004, which gives the commissioner of the department (commissioner) general statewide responsibility for the administration of the Communicable Disease Act and authorizes the adoption of rules necessary for its effective administration and implementation; §81.041, which requires that the executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission (executive commissioner) identify and maintain a list of reportable diseases; §81.042(c), which requires rules to establish procedures to determine if a child should be reported and excluded from school; §81.042(d), which requires that health facilities report disease diagnoses in accordance with procedures adopted by the executive commissioner; §81.50, which requires that the executive commissioner adopt rules that prescribe the criteria that constitute exposure to reportable diseases; §81.082, which requires that control measures for communicable disease must be established by rules adopted by the executive commissioner; and Government Code, §531.0055, and Health and Safety Code, §1001.075, which authorize the Executive Commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission to adopt rules and policies necessary for the operation and provision of health and human services by the department and for the administration of the Health and Safety Code, Chapter 1001.
§97.3.What Condition to Report and What Isolates to Report or Submit.
(a) Humans.
(1) Identification of notifiable conditions.
(A) A summary list of notifiable conditions and reporting time frames is published on the Department of State Health Services web site at http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/idcu/. Copies are filed in the Infectious Disease Surveillance and Epidemiology Branch, Department of State Health Services, 1100 West 49th Street, Austin, Texas 78756.
(B) Repetitive test results from the same patient do not need to be reported except those for mycobacterial infections.
(2) Notifiable conditions or isolates.
(A) Confirmed and suspected human cases of the following diseases/infections are reportable: acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS); amebiasis; anthrax; arboviral infections caused by California serogroup virus, Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) virus, Powassan virus, St. Louis encephalitis (SLE) virus, Western equine encephalitis (WEE) virus, and West Nile (WN) virus; botulism-adult and infant; brucellosis; campylobacteriosis; chancroid; chickenpox (varicella); Chlamydia trachomatis infection; Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD); cryptosporidiosis; cyclosporiasis; dengue; diphtheria; ehrlichiosis; encephalitis (specify etiology); Escherichia coli , enterohemorrhagic infection; gonorrhea; Hansen's disease (leprosy); Haemophilus influenzae type b infection, invasive; hantavirus infection; hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS); hepatitis A, B, C, D, E, and unspecified (acute); hepatitis B, (acute and chronic) identified prenatally or at delivery as described in §97.135 of this title (relating to Serologic Testing during Pregnancy and Delivery); perinatal hepatitis B infection; human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection; influenza-associated pediatric mortality; legionellosis; leishmaniasis; listeriosis; Lyme disease; malaria; measles (rubeola); meningitis (specify type); meningococcal infection, invasive; mumps; pertussis; plague; poliomyelitis, acute paralytic; Q fever; rabies; relapsing fever; rubella (including congenital); salmonellosis, including typhoid fever; severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) as defined by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; shigellosis; smallpox; spotted fever group rickettsioses (such as Rocky Mountain spotted fever); streptococcal disease: invasive group A, invasive group B, or invasive Streptococcus pneumoniae; syphilis; Taenia solium and undifferentiated Taenia infections, including cysticercosis; tetanus; trichinosis; tuberculosis; tularemia; typhus; Vibrio infection, including cholera (specify species); viral hemorrhagic fevers; yellow fever; yersiniosis; and vancomycin-intermediate resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VISA), and vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA).
(B) In addition to individual case reports, any outbreak, exotic disease, or unusual group expression of disease that may be of public health concern should be reported by the most expeditious means.
(3) Minimal reportable information requirements. The minimal information that shall be reported for each disease is as follows:
(A) AIDS, chancroid, Chlamydia trachomatis infection, gonorrhea, HIV infection, and syphilis shall be reported in accordance with §§97.132-97.135 of this title (relating to Sexually Transmitted Diseases, including AIDS and HIV infection);
(B) for tuberculosis disease - complete name, date of birth, physical address and county of residence, information on which diagnosis was based or suspected. In addition, if known, radiographic or diagnostic imaging results and date(s); all information necessary to complete the most recent versions of forms TB 400 A & B (Report of Case and Patient Services), TB 340 (Report of Contacts) and TB 341 (Continuation of Report of Contacts); laboratory results used to guide prescribing, monitoring or modifying antibiotic treatment regimens for tuberculosis to include, but not limited to, liver function studies, renal function studies, and serum drug levels; pathology reports related to diagnostic evaluations of tuberculosis; reports of imaging or radiographic studies; records of hospital or outpatient care to include, but not limited to, histories and physical examinations, discharge summaries and progress notes; records of medication administration to include, but not limited to, directly observed therapy (DOT) records, and drug toxicity and monitoring records; a listing of other patient medications to evaluate the potential for drug-drug interactions; and copies of court documents related to court ordered management of tuberculosis.
(C) for contacts to a known case of tuberculosis - complete name; date of birth; physical address; county of residence; and all information necessary to complete the most recent versions of forms TB 400 A & B (Report of Case and Patient Services), TB 340 (Report of Contacts), and TB 341 (Continuation of Report of Contacts);
(D) for other persons identified with latent TB infection - complete name; date of birth; physical address and county of residence; and diagnostic information;
(E) for hepatitis B, (chronic and acute) identified prenatally or at delivery - mother's name, address, telephone number, age, date of birth, sex, race and ethnicity, preferred language, hepatitis B laboratory test results; estimated delivery date or date and time of birth; name and phone number of delivery hospital or planned delivery hospital; name of infant; name, phone number, and address of medical provider for infant; date, time, formulation, dose, manufacturer, and lot number of hepatitis B vaccine and hepatitis B immune globulin administered to infant;
(F) for hepatitis A, B, C, D, E - name, address, telephone number, age, date of birth, sex, race and ethnicity, disease, diagnostic indicators (diagnostic lab results, including all positive and negative hepatitis panel results, liver function tests, and symptoms), date of onset, pregnancy status, and physician name, address, and telephone number;
(G) for perinatal hepatitis B - name of infant; date of birth; sex; race; ethnicity; name, phone number and address of medical provider for infant; date, time, formulation, dose, manufacturer, and lot number of hepatitis B vaccine and hepatitis B immune globulin administered to infant, hepatitis B laboratory test results;
(H) for chickenpox - name, date of birth, sex, race and ethnicity, address, date of onset, and varicella vaccination history;
(I) for VISA; and VRSA - name, address, telephone number, age, date of birth, sex, race and ethnicity, disease, diagnostic indicators (diagnostic lab results, anatomic site of culture, and clinical indicators), date of onset, and physician name, address, and telephone number;
(J) for Hansen's disease - name; date of birth; sex; race and ethnicity; social security number; disease type; place of birth; address; telephone number; date entered Texas; date entered U.S.; education/employment; insurance status; location and inclusive dates of residence outside U.S.; date of onset and history prior to diagnosis; date of initial biopsy and result; date initial drugs prescribed and name of drugs; name, date of birth and relationship of household contacts; and name, address, and telephone number of physician; and
(K) for all other notifiable conditions listed in paragraph (2)(A) of this subsection - name, address, telephone number, age, date of birth, sex, race and ethnicity, disease, diagnostic indicators (diagnostic lab results and specimen source, and clinical indicators), date of onset, and physician name, address, and telephone number.
(4) Diseases requiring submission of cultures. For all anthrax (Bacillus anthracis), botulism-adult and infant (Clostridium botulinum), brucellosis (Brucella species), E.coli 0157:H7, isolates or specimens from cases where Shiga-toxin activity is demonstrated, Listeria monocytogenes, meningococcal infection, invasive (Neisseria meningitidis from normally sterile sites), plague (Yersinia pestis), tuberculosis ( Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex), tularemia (Francisella tularensis ), all Staphylococcus aureus with a vancomycin MIC greater than 2 µg/mL, and Vibrio species - pure cultures shall be submitted accompanied by a current department Specimen Submission Form.
(5) Laboratory reports. Reports from laboratories shall include name, patient identification number, address, telephone number, age, date of birth, sex, race and ethnicity, specimen submitter name, address, and phone number, specimen type, date specimen collected, disease test and test result, normal test range, date of test report, and physician name and telephone number.
(b) Animals.
(1) Clinically diagnosed or laboratory-confirmed animal cases of the following diseases are reportable: anthrax, arboviral encephalitis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in animals other than those housed in research facilities, plague, and psittacosis. Also, all non-negative rabies tests performed on animals from Texas at laboratories located outside of Texas shall be reported; all non-negative rabies tests performed in Texas will be reported by the laboratory conducting the testing. In addition to individual case reports, any outbreak, exotic disease, or unusual group expression of disease which may be of public health concern should be reported by the most expeditious means.
(2) The minimal information that shall be reported for each disease includes species and number of animals affected, disease or condition, name and phone number of the veterinarian or other person in attendance, and the animal(s) owner's name, address, and phone number. Other information may be required as part of an investigation in accordance with Texas Health and Safety Code, §81.061.
§97.4.When to Report a Condition or Isolate.
(a) Humans.
(1) The following notifiable conditions are public health emergencies and suspect cases shall be reported immediately by phone to the local health authority or the regional director of the Department of State Health Services (department): anthrax; botulism, foodborne; diphtheria; Haemophilus influenzae type b infection, invasive; measles (rubeola); meningococcal infection, invasive; poliomyelitis, acute paralytic; plague; rabies; severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS); smallpox; tularemia; viral hemorrhagic fevers; yellow fever. Vancomycin-intermediate resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VISA) and vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA) shall be reported immediately by phone to the Infectious Disease Surveillance and Epidemiology Branch, Department of State Health Services, Austin at (800) 252-8239.
(2) The following notifiable conditions shall be reported within one working day of identification as a suspected case: brucellosis, hepatitis A (acute), influenza-associated pediatric mortality perinatal hepatitis B, pertussis, Q fever, rubella (including congenital), tuberculosis, and Vibrio infection (including cholera).
(3) AIDS, chancroid, Chlamydia trachomatis infection, gonorrhea, HIV infection, and syphilis shall be reported in accordance with §§97.132 - 97.135 of this title (relating to Sexually Transmitted Diseases including AIDS and HIV infection);
(4) Tuberculosis antibiotic susceptibility results should be reported by laboratories no later than one week after they first become available.
(5) For all other notifiable conditions not listed in paragraphs (1)-(3) of this subsection, reports of disease shall be made no later than one week after a case or suspected case is identified.
(6) All anthrax ( Bacillus anthracis ), botulism-adult and infant ( Clostridium botulinum ), brucellosis ( Brucella species), E.coli 0157:H7, isolates or specimens from cases where Shiga-toxin activity is demonstrated, Listeria monocytogenes, meningococcal infection, invasive (Neisseria meningitidis from normally sterile sites), plague (Yersinia pestis), tuberculosis (Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex), tularemia (Francisella tularensis), VISA, VRSA and Vibrio species shall be submitted as pure cultures to the Department of State Health Services, Laboratory Services Section, 1100 West 49th Street, Austin, Texas 78756-3199 as they become available.
(b) Animals. Reportable conditions affecting animals shall be reported within one working day following the diagnosis.
§97.5.Where To Report a Condition or Isolate; Where To Submit an Isolate.
(a) Humans.
(1) A physician, dentist, veterinarian, chiropractor, reporting officer of a hospital, person in charge of a hospital laboratory (if the laboratory reports independently), person permitted by law to attend a pregnant woman during gestation or at the delivery of an infant, or school authority shall report to the local health authority where the office, clinic, hospital, or school is located. If there is no local health authority appointed for the jurisdiction where the office, clinic, hospital, or school is located, the report shall be made to the Department of State Health Services (department) regional director. Public health emergencies shall be reported to the department's central office if the local health authority or the department's regional director is not immediately accessible.
(2) The administrative officer of a clinical laboratory, blood bank, mobile unit, or other facility shall report a condition or submit an isolate as follows.
(A) If the laboratory examination was requested by a physician, notice shall be sent to the local health authority for the jurisdiction where the physician's office is located, to the department's regional director for the jurisdiction where the physician's office is located if no local health authority exists, or to the department's central office when the regional director or local health authority are unknown to the laboratory.
(B) If the laboratory examination was not requested by a physician, notice shall be sent to the local health authority for the jurisdiction where the laboratory is located, to the department's regional director for the jurisdiction where the laboratory is located if no local health authority has been appointed, or to the department's central office when the regional director or local health authority are unknown to the laboratory.
(C) For VISA and VRSA immediately report by phone to the Infectious Disease Surveillance and Epidemiology Branch at 1-800-252-8239.
(D) All anthrax (Bacillus anthracis), botulism-adult and infant (Clostridium botulinum), brucellosis (Brucella species), E.coli 0157:H7, isolates or specimens from cases where Shiga-toxin activity is demonstrated, Listeria monocytogenes, meningococcal infection, invasive (Neisseria meningitidis) from normally sterile sites, plague (Yersinia pestis), tuberculosis (Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex), tularemia (Francisella tularensis), all Staphylococcus aureus with a vancomycin MIC greater than 2 µg/mL, and Vibrio species shall be submitted as pure cultures to the Department of State Health Services, Laboratory Services Section, 1100 West 49th Street, Austin, Texas 78756-3199.
(3) Sexually transmitted diseases including HIV and AIDS shall be reported in accordance with §§97.132 - 97.135 of this title (relating to Sexually Transmitted Diseases Including Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)).
(b) Animals.
(1) Reportable conditions in animals shall be reported to either the appropriate Department of State Health Services regional zoonosis control office or the Zoonosis Control Branch office in Austin.
(2) Conditions in animals that are reportable to both the Department of State Health Services and the Texas Animal Health Commission can be reported to either one of the agencies, which will forward the information to the other agency.
§97.7.Diseases Requiring Exclusion from Child-care Facilities and Schools.
(a) The owner or operator of a child-care facility, or the school administrator, shall exclude from attendance any child having or suspected of having a communicable condition. Exclusion shall continue until the readmission criteria for the conditions are met. The conditions and readmission criteria are as follows:
(1) amebiasis--exclude until treatment is initiated;
(2) campylobacteriosis--exclude until after diarrhea and fever subside;
(3) chickenpox--exclude until the lesions become dry;
(4) common cold--exclude until fever subsides;
(5) conjunctivitis, bacterial and/or viral--exclude until written permission and/or permit is issued by a physician or local health authority;
(6) fever--exclude until fever subsides without use of fever suppressing medications;
(7) fifth disease (erythema infectiosum)--exclude until fever subsides;
(8) gastroenteritis--exclude until diarrhea subsides without the use of diarrhea suppressing medications;
(9) giardiasis--exclude until diarrhea subsides;
(10) head lice (pediculosis)--exclude until one medicated shampoo or lotion treatment has been given;
(11) hepatitis A--exclude until one week after onset of illness;
(12) impetigo--exclude until treatment has begun;
(13) infectious mononucleosis--exclude until physician decides or fever subsides;
(14) influenza--exclude until fever subsides;
(15) measles (rubeola)--exclude until four days after rash onset or in the case of an outbreak, unimmunized children should also be excluded for at least two weeks after last rash onset occurs;
(16) meningitis, bacterial--exclude until written permission and/or permit is issued by a physician or local health authority;
(17) meningitis, viral--exclude until fever subsides;
(18) mumps--exclude until nine days after the onset of swelling;
(19) pertussis (whooping cough)--exclude until completion of five days of antibiotic therapy;
(20) ringworm--exclude until treatment has begun;
(21) rubella (German measles)--exclude until seven days after rash onset or in the case of an outbreak, unimmunized children should be excluded for at least three weeks after last rash onset occurs;
(22) salmonellosis--exclude until diarrhea and fever subside;
(23) scabies--exclude until treatment has begun;
(24) shigellosis--exclude until diarrhea and fever subside;
(25) streptococcal sore throat and scarlet fever--exclude until 24 hours from time antibiotic treatment was begun and fever subsided; and
(26) tuberculosis, pulmonary--exclude until antibiotic treatment has begun and a physician's certificate or health permit obtained.
(b) The owner or operator of a child-care facility, or the school administrator, shall exclude from attendance any child having or suspected of having a communicable disease designated by the Commissioner of Health (commissioner) as cause for exclusion until one of the criteria listed in subsection (c) of this section is fulfilled.
(c) Any child excluded for reason of communicable disease may be readmitted, as determined by the health authority, by:
(1) submitting a certificate of the attending physician, advanced practice nurse, or physician assistant attesting that the child does not currently have signs or symptoms of a communicable disease or to the disease's non-communicability in a child-care or school setting;
(2) submitting a permit for readmission issued by a local health authority; or
(3) meeting readmission criteria as established by the commissioner.
§97.9.Quarantine of Specific Premises and Application of Control Measures to Private and Common Carriers.
(a) A health authority may declare a house, building, apartment, room, or place within the health authority's jurisdiction to be a place of quarantine whenever a case of communicable disease occurs therein, and, in the health authority's opinion, it is necessary to do so in order to protect the public health. No person shall leave or enter the place during the period of quarantine except with specific permission of the health authority.
(b) The department or health authority may investigate and apply control measures to private and common carriers and private conveyances as authorized in Disease Prevention and Control Act (Act), Health and Safety Code, §81.086, when they have reasonable cause to believe that:
(1) it has departed from or traveled through an area infected or contaminated with a communicable disease;
(2) it is or may be infected or contaminated with a communicable disease;
(3) an individual on board has been exposed to or is the carrier of a communicable disease; or
(4) it has cargo or an object on board that is or may be infected or contaminated with a communicable disease.
This agency hereby certifies that the adoption has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's legal authority.
Filed with the Office of the Secretary of State on May 16, 2007.
TRD-200701922
Linda Wiegman
Deputy General Counsel
Department of State Health Services
Effective date: June 5, 2007
Proposal publication date: November 17, 2006
For further information, please call: (512) 458-7111 x6972
STATUTORY AUTHORITY
The repeals are adopted under the Health and Safety Code, §81.004, which gives the commissioner of the department (commissioner) general statewide responsibility for the administration of the Communicable Disease Act and authorizes the adoption of rules necessary for its effective administration and implementation; §81.041, which requires that the executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission (executive commissioner) identify and maintain a list of reportable diseases; §81.042(c), which requires rules to establish procedures to determine if a child should be reported and excluded from school; §81.042(d), which requires that health facilities report disease diagnoses in accordance with procedures adopted by the executive commissioner; §81.50, which requires that the executive commissioner adopt rules that prescribe the criteria that constitute exposure to reportable diseases; §81.082, which requires that control measures for communicable disease must be established by rules adopted by the executive commissioner; and Government Code, §531.0055, and Health and Safety Code, §1001.075, which authorize the Executive Commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission to adopt rules and policies necessary for the operation and provision of health and human services by the department and for the administration of the Health and Safety Code, Chapter 1001.
This agency hereby certifies that the adoption has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's legal authority.
Filed with the Office of the Secretary of State on May 16, 2007.
TRD-200701923
Linda Weigman
Deputy General Counsel
Department of State Health Services
Effective date: June 5, 2007
Proposal publication date: November 17, 2006
For further information, please call: (512) 458-7111 x6972