ASSEMBLY HEALTH COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

ASSEMBLY, No. 5222

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  JANUARY 13, 2021

      The Assembly Health Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Assembly Bill No. 5222.

      As amended and reported, this bill provides that the New Jersey State Board of Optometrists may certify an optometrist to administer an epinephrine auto-injector device to a patient who is 18 years of age or older and who appears to be suffering from anaphylaxis and  immunizations to patients who are 18 years of age or older during a public health emergency declared which are intended to prevent or reduce the transmission of the disease that is the basis for the declared public health emergency.  Authorization to administer an immunization or an injection is to terminate following the end of the declared public health emergency.  At a minimum, immunization administration training based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is to be a prerequisite for certification to administer an immunization pursuant to the bill’s provisions.  Any immunization administered to a patient by an optometrist is to be reported by the optometrist to the New Jersey Immunization Information System established pursuant to section 4 of P.L.2004, c.138 (C.26:4-134) for inclusion in the patient’s registry.

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:

      The amendments:

      1)   make a technical change to the synopsis;

      2)   remove provisions of the bill pertaining to the influenza vaccine; and

      3)   change certification standards and restrict authorization under the bill to certain immunizations and injections during a declared public health emergency to patients who are 18 years of age or older, as provided for in the bill.