Colorado § 22-20-121 - Medically necessary treatment in school setting - policy - report - definitions.

§ 22-20-121. Medically necessary treatment in school setting - policy - report - definitions.

(1) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:

(a) "Medically necessary treatment" means treatment recommended or ordered by a Colorado licensed health-care provider acting within the scope of the health-care provider's license.

(b) "Private health-care specialist" means a health-care provider who is licensed, certified, or otherwise authorized to provide health-care services in Colorado, including pediatric behavioral health treatment providers pursuant to the state medical assistance program, articles 4, 5, and 6 of title 25.5, and autism services providers who provide treatment pursuant to section 10-16-104 (1.4).

(2) (a) No later than July 1, 2023, each administrative unit shall adopt a policy that addresses how a student who has a prescription from a qualified health-care provider for medically necessary treatment receives such treatment in the school setting as required by applicable federal and state laws, including section 504 of the federal "Rehabilitation Act of 1973", 29 U.S.C. sec. 794, as amended, and Title II of the federal "Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990".

(b) The policy developed pursuant to subsection (2)(a) of this section must:

(I) Include a notice to the parent or legal guardian of the student that section 504 of the federal "Rehabilitation Act of 1973", 29 U.S.C. sec. 794, as amended, and Title II of the federal "Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990" provide rights and protections to students to access medically necessary treatment required by the student to have meaningful access to the benefits of a public education, or to attend school without risks to the student's health or safety due to the student's disabling medical condition;

(II) Address the process in which a private health-care specialist may observe the student in the school setting, collaborate with instructional personnel in the school setting, and provide medically necessary treatment in the school setting as required by section 504 of the federal "Rehabilitation Act of 1973", 29 U.S.C. sec. 794, as amended, and Title II of the federal "Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990"; and

(III) Provide notice of a student's right to appeal the decision of an administrative unit concerning access to medically necessary treatment in the school setting.

(3) Each administrative unit shall make the policy developed pursuant to subsection (2) of this section publicly available on the administrative unit's website and available to the parent or legal guardian of the student, upon request.

(4) (a) Beginning July 1, 2024, and each July 1 thereafter, each administrative unit shall compile and provide to the department of education the total number of requests for access to a student by a private health-care specialist pursuant to this section and whether the access was authorized or denied.

(b) Beginning January 2025, and each January thereafter, the department of education shall make the information reported pursuant to subsection (4)(a) of this section available on the department's website and report the information to the house of representatives education committee and the senate education committee, or their successor committees, as part of the "State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act" presentation required by part 2 of article 7 of title 2.

Source: L. 2022: Entire section added, (HB 22-1260), ch. 320, p. 2268, § 2, effective August 10.

Cross references: For the legislative declaration in HB 22-1260, see section 1 of chapter 320, Session Laws of Colorado 2022.

ANNOTATION

Law reviews. For note, "Medicalization of Education: Applied Behavioral Analysis in Colorado Schools", see 96 U. Colo. L. Rev. 331 (2025).