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THE SENATE |
S.C.R. NO. |
157 |
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TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2017 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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SENATE CONCURRENT
RESOLUTION
requesting the Department of health to collaborate with the department of education, hawaii association of independent schools, and the university of hawaii to promote awareness of meningococcal disease and the availability of vaccines to prevent it.
WHEREAS, meningococcal disease is any infection caused by the bacterium Neisseria meningitidis; and
WHEREAS, although 1 in 10 people are carriers for this bacteria with no signs or symptoms of disease, from 800 to 1,500 individuals fall ill from the Neisseria meningitidis bacteria each year; and
WHEREAS, 10 to 15 infected individuals out of 100 will die even when treated and 10 to 20 out of every 100 people who survive will suffer from serious morbidity, including loss of limbs and impacts to the nervous system; and
WHEREAS, infants under one year of age and young adults between the ages of 16 and 23, are among those most commonly impacted by this disease; and
WHEREAS, meningococcal disease is spread from person to person via the exchange of the bacteria through respiratory and throat secretion during close or lengthy contact and community settings in which large groups of people gather, like college campuses, can increase the risk of the spread of meningococcal disease; and
WHEREAS, there are different strains or serogroups of Neisseria meningitidis, with serogroups B, C, and Y accounting for most meningococcal diseases in the United States, including several recent outbreaks of serogroup B meningococcal disease on college campuses in which some cases resulted in death; and
WHEREAS, vaccines that provide protection against multiple serogroups, including B, C, and Y which are the types most commonly seen in the United States, are available and vaccination for serogroups A, C, W, and Y is routinely recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; and
WHEREAS, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommends that the decision to vaccinate against serogroup B be made on an individual level in consultation with health care providers; and
WHEREAS, the recent incidence of meningococcal disease has served as a reminder of the critical role that awareness of vaccines to prevent illness from multiple serogroups of Neisseria meningitidis plays in prevention of this devastating illness; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-ninth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2017, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Department of Health is requested to collaborate with the Department of Education, Hawaii Association of Independent Schools, and the University of Hawaii to provide information to students and parents statewide about meningococcal disease, including the various serogroups, symptoms, risks, prevention, and treatment; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Health is requested to include information on the availability, benefits, risks, and limitations of all meningococcal vaccines recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, including recommendations for serogroups A and B, and specific information for individuals at high risk of contracting meningococcal disease; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Health is requested to make recommendations to the Department of Education, Hawaii Association of Independent Schools, and the University of Hawaii regarding the immunization of current and entering adolescent and young adult students; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Health, Superintendent of Education, Chancellors of the University of Hawaii's University and Community College campuses, and Executive Director of Hawaii Association of Independent Schools.
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OFFERED BY: |
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Meningococcal Disease; Vaccination Recommendations