When a Fairfax County mother got an urgent call from school last month reporting that her teenage daughter was caught popping a pill at lunchtime, she did not panic. “It was probably her birth-control pill,” she thought. She was right. Her heart dropped that afternoon in the assistant principal’s office at Oakton High School when she and her daughter heard the mandatory punishment: A two-week suspension and recommendation for expulsion. “I realize my daughter broke a rule,” the mother said. But in an appeal to the school system, she reasoned, “the punishment does not fit the crime.”
For two decades, many schools have set zero-tolerance policies on drugs. That means no over-the-counter drugs, no prescription drugs, no pretend drugs in student lockers or pockets. When many teens have ready access to medicine cabinets filled with prescription medications such as Xanax and Vicodin, any capsule or tablet is suspect.
Still, some parents and civil rights advocates say enforcement has been overzealous. Stringent rules have ensnared not only drug dealers and abusers, but a host of sniffling and headachy students seeking quick medical relief. The Supreme Court will consider this month the case of a 13-year-old Arizona student who was strip-searched in 2003 by an administrator who suspected that she was carrying ibuprofen pills.
Fairfax School Board members have debated over time whether to allow students to carry Tylenol or other over-the-counter medicines without registering them with the school nurse. County policy permits cough drops to be carried on campus, for instance, but not shared. Arlington County policies permit high school students to carry over-the-counter pain relievers. A 2006 state law in Maryland overturned some local rules requiring a doctor’s note for children to use sunscreen at school.
Health advocates say that harsh penalties for students who take birth-control pills at school conflicts with a campaign schools are waging against teen pregnancy.A small portion of school health clinics across the country distribute birth-control pills to teens. But in Fairfax, even carrying the pills in a backpack is counted among the most serious offenses in the Student Responsibilities and Rights handbook.
During two weeks of watching television game shows and trying to keep up with homework online, the Fairfax teen, an honor student and lettered athlete, had time to study the handbook closely. If she had been caught high on LSD, heroin or another illegal drug, she found, she would have been suspended for five days. Taking her prescribed birth-control pill on campus drew the same punishment as bringing a gun to school would have.
Shouldn’t parents have the right to decide whether their teenage daughter can protect herself from an unwanted pregnancy, or is abortion the better option? A “just say no” approach to this is a little naive.
First, I think that yes, this would violate HIPPA regulations if she is forced to leave the pills with the nurse. Since the school nurse is not part of her medical treatment, the nurse has no business knowing any detail of that treatment.
Second, by forcing the student to take the pills outside of school, the school is now forcing the student to accept their input into her medical treatment, something HIPPA and most State medical rules don’t allow.
Third, leaving the prescription with the school nurse would violate either of 1) having prescription medicine without a physician’s prescription, or 2) having a prescription medication not belonging to the person holding that prescription.
Fourth, leaving an unknown medicine with the school nurse leaves the nurse not knowing if the prescription is prescribed by a licensed physician or not.
Fifth, a school nurse will not dispense minor, non prescription drugs, (Tylenol, Ibuprofen, Sudefed, Clariton, hydrocortizone, etc) unless the student supplies the drugs. Nor will the nurse keep a supply of these drugs on hand even if the student brings them in at the beginning of the year.
Sixth, unless the student gets permission from a teacher, they are not allowed to visit the nurse anyway, this now makes the teacher part of the medical process.
Of course, the right wing nuts will just comment that it is the students responsibility to obey the rules.
Another sorry chapter in America’s Failed War on Drugs. FWoD sounds about right. Or should it be lower-cased? Should fwod be a noun, verb or both? “Our government has fwodded itself into impotence.” or “Depression? Nah, all we need is another fwod.” But I digress.
My suggestion is to take young Missie on a two-week vacation to Paris. She’ll learn a lot more there than she would have at Stalag Senior Secondary–and it will royally piss off the school principal. Vive la reine.
You guys really need to read and understand the HIPPA regulations.
Wow! I almost completely agreed with a post by Mr. Fusion until he went off the deep end and blamed the right wing.
All charges dropped against Stevens. The tubes have been untied!
[On topic Hill - ed.]
#25…Stevens is still guilty as hell.
No doubt she took the pill during the day because she was planning to bang the gym teacher in his office after 6th period. Duh!
They had a similar punishment for possession of a cell phone when I was in high school. A cell phone. Ten years from now you can be sure these zero tolerance policies for prescriptions (and those who support them) will seem equally as ridiculous.
Certainly, the buffoon administrators are *way* over-reacting here. Give the girl a detention and tell her to leave the BC pills at home.
*BUT* the “no pills at school” rule is not without merit. Kids trade pills, and take all kinds of who-knows-what nowadays to get high. And BC pills are serious medication that can cause damage if not taken properly or if abused.
Besides, why is she bringing the *daily* medication at school. Leave it at home, take it at home, avoid the trouble in the first place.
2, 3: That’s what happens when we live in a sue society with parents wanting heads to roll over damn near anything. What’s the best approach with the least liabilities?
And having things registered and retained by the school nurse is hardly an invasion of privacy. She’s a “medical professional”. She’s bound by the same privacy laws, no?
10: I don’t deny the common sense approach, but the problem is liabilities that the beloved lawyers in this country have brought down upon everyone in one way shape or form. When you get lawyers involved, common sense goes right out the window. You’ll always find some unscrupulous lawyer looking to make a quick buck out of a lawsuit.
Here’s another twist. If the school showed any leniency / slack, they could open themselves up for a discrimination lawsuit and so forth because they were easy-going for one student but not another.
12, And the girl would respond with why should she have to?
19, You’re blowing this way out of proportion. No one said she couldn’t take the meds. She just couldn’t have it on her to take anywhere or anytime around school… heck what if she “loaned” some to a GF and that GF has a bad reaction due to some unknown medical condition? Would the school be liable? Would the parents of the girl who gave out the pill to her friend be liable? We live in a sue society. This is what happens when you live in a sue society.
You mean there are limits on liberal prudery?
Who cares? Everyone knows she’s a slut.
School policy or school board policy as a repsonse to presure from parents and others?
10 to 1 the school didn’t make that one up.
#29, Guyver,
A sue society? What the heck? The child’s mother went to the school and spoke with the Principal. It was the Principal that didn’t want to discuss it.
Every day the billions of interactions. Every day there are more billions of products purchased. Billions of times every day no one sues because the interaction and product didn’t hurt anyone. When someone gets hurt you idiots trot out this “it’s a sue society”. Bullshit. Its a deny I’m responsible attitude that has so many law suits filed.
All a lawyer would need do is file a sex discrimination suit. Why? Because a male student wouldn’t be suspended for carrying a condom.
Do you suppose our society has come under the general impression that inalienable rights are now acquired only when one reaches age 18?
# 31 Angel H. Wong said,”Who cares? Everyone knows she’s a slut.”
Dear Angel, I do hope that was sarcasm and not your true feelings. You know there are other reasons than birth control for a teenager to take hormones like these. Some doctors use them to help control acne. Perhaps her young body is experiencing difficulties and she is being treated for extra heavy bleeding or irregular menses or even endometriosis. There’s a particularly awful form of PMS called premenstrual dysphoric disorder and, guess what? The treatment is an oral birth control pill. There are other reasons.
Now, did she NEED to take the pill at school? Nope. None of the reasons for taking the pill are critically time dependent. As someone above suggested, she was probably showing off to her friends. Still, I don’t think it is right for a school administrator to come between me and my patient. Maybe I had a reason for suggesting she take the pill every day at lunch. There is a special and legal relationship between a doctor and a patient and the school nurse is not entitled to enter that relationship without invitation.
Assume the girl was not showing off but just caught popping the pill. Maybe she and her doctor decided it was not necessary to advertise to the world she had a problem with her ovaries that was causing hair to grow on her chest. Once she reported it to the school nurse, it will be in her school records for ever and don’t fool yourself into thinking there is any right of privacy about your school records.
Yes, the girl was wrong for bringing the pills to school. But, also wrong are idiotic school administrators and Miss Wong.
Sorry for the double post but I neglected to mention this:
# 29 Guyver said, “…the school nurse is … a “medical professional”. She’s bound by the same privacy laws, no?”
No, Mac. There is no guarantee of privacy from the school nurse. She is employed by the school, not the patient. The “school nurse” will complete a log each day of her activities and provide that information to an administrator. That would be the first of many breeches of confidentiality if such an expectation of privacy even existed.
#35–Nimby==you know I love you, but: “Still, I don’t think it is right for a school administrator to come between me and my patient.” /// So Close! The privacy privilege is that of the patient NOT the overly possessive ego-centric and ego driven docteur!!
I suppose its better for you to risk neck strain carrying that ego of yours around WHILE protecting the patient/doctor privilege but you would demonstrate a little more humility and better understanding of the privilege, to put the privilege holder FIRST in your estimations.
Other than that, glad to see you care.
“…her teenage daughter was caught popping a pill at lunchtime, she did not panic. “It was probably her birth-control pill,” she thought.”
More like, her teenage WHORE. Way to raise a good kid there, mom.
#37, Bobbo,
I have to agree with Nimby on this. The mistake I see you making is that this is a patient / physician privilege. No. It is a patient confidentiality privilege. If you don’t need the information in the further treatment of the patient, you have no right to see it.
My wife, a Nursing Supervisor, just ran into a similar problem recently. A Lab Tech’s relative was hospitalized and the Lab Tech wanted to see the charts. Under HIPPA the Tech was not allowed to and any nurse that allowed her to could lose thier license and be fired.
In this case, the nurse has no right knowing what treatment the patient is receiving UNLESS that treatment / condition is medically relevant to the student’s attendance, learning abilities, or effect on classmates, such as a contagion.
Gee…I wonder what those idiots at the school will do when the girl gets pregnant?