[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 583 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 583

     To require the provision of information to parents and adults 
 concerning bacterial meningitis and the availability of a vaccination 
                     with respect to such disease.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 10, 2003

Mrs. Hutchison introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
  referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To require the provision of information to parents and adults 
 concerning bacterial meningitis and the availability of a vaccination 
                     with respect to such disease.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Meningitis Immunization Awareness 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Approximately 3,000 cases of meningococcal disease 
        occur each year in the United States. Approximately 10 to 13 
        percent of patients with such disease die despite receiving 
        antibiotics early in the disease. Of those individuals who 
        survive, an additional 10 percent have severe after-effects of 
        the disease, including mental retardation, hearing loss, and 
        loss of limbs.
            (2) There is a vaccine that protects individuals against 
        some types of bacterium Neisseria meningitidis (also known as 
        meningococcus), an important cause of bacterial meningitis and 
        sepsis in children and young adults. A single dose of the 
        vaccine is recommended, and vaccination will decrease the risk 
        of the disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis.
            (3) Currently, the only group of individuals that is 
        vaccinated against bacterial meningitis is the members of the 
        armed forces. The only other group of individuals that have 
        been encouraged to get the vaccine are those individuals 
        attending college.

SEC. 3. PROVISION OF INFORMATION.

    (a) Development of Information.--The Secretary of Health and Human 
Services, in consultation with the Director of the Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention, shall develop and make available to entities 
described in subsection (b) information concerning bacterial meningitis 
and the availability and effectiveness of vaccinations for individuals 
2 years of age or older with respect to such disease.
    (b) Entities.--An entity is described in this subsection if the 
entity--
            (1) is--
                    (A) a child care center or provider that is 
                licensed or certified under an appropriate State law;
                    (B) an elementary or secondary school (as such 
                terms are defined in the Elementary and Secondary 
                School Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.);
                    (C) a college or university;
                    (D) a boarding school or summer camp;
                    (E) a prison or other detention facility; or
                    (F) any other entity that provides for the housing 
                of individuals in a dorm-like setting; and
            (2) any other entity determined appropriate by the 
        Secretary of Health and Human Services.
                                 <all>