Bill
HB 842
Allows NC public schools to conduct vision, hearing, dental, and developmental screenings without parental consent, with annual notice and result reporting to parents.
Status: Introduced in the 2025 session; passed first reading and referred to committee. Effective date: “when it becomes law” (per bill text).
Primary sponsors: Rep. Helfrich (primary sponsors list also includes Reps. Carney, Crawford, and Greenfield).
Purpose
- To clarify how routine health screenings in public K‑12 schools are defined and to set parental notification requirements when schools conduct those screenings. The bill distinguishes “health care screenings” from other school health services and specifies that certain screenings may be performed without prior parental consent, provided parents are notified.
Key provisions
- Amends G.S. 115C‑76.45(a) to (1) confirm that “health care services” (which generally require parental consent) do not include “health care screenings,” and (2) retain other parental notification rights (e.g., copy of K–3 questionnaires prior to administration; notice of service changes; access to records).
- Adds a new statute, G.S. 115C‑76.46, defining “school health care screenings” to include:
- Vision screening
- Hearing screening
- Dental screening
- Developmental screening for cognition, language, and motor function (as conducted under G.S. 115C‑83.5(a))
- Permits public school units to conduct these screenings without obtaining parental consent, but requires schools to:
- Provide parents, at the beginning of each school year, notice of all screenings that will be conducted that year; and
- Notify parents of the screening results for their child.
Who is affected
- Public school students in North Carolina (including K–12), especially those receiving vision, hearing, dental, or developmental screenings.
- Parents/guardians: their right to prior consent for other “health care services” remains, but they will not be required to consent to the specified routine screenings; they will receive advance notice and individual results.
- School districts and public school units: responsible for implementing annual notifications and result reporting.
Practical effects and considerations
- Schools can perform routine vision/hearing/dental/developmental screenings without obtaining individual parental consent, which may increase the number of students screened and earlier identification of needs.
- The bill preserves parental access to records and notice rights, but reduces a consent barrier for routine screenings — potentially raising questions among parents about opt‑out procedures (the bill requires notice but does not specify an opt‑out mechanism).
- Administrative impact on school systems: need to adopt or revise annual notification procedures and processes for reporting individual screening results to parents.
Statutory references
- Amendments to G.S. 115C‑76.45(a) and creation of G.S. 115C‑76.46.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
Sign in to ask a question.
