Tag: Jim Schulte

        Legislation that stems from the tragic death of a boy in Harlem in 2017 is back before the Missouri House. 

      Though the operators of 3-year-old Elijah-Alavi Silvera’s daycare had been told he had a severe dairy allergy, he was given a grilled cheese sandwich.  He went into severe anaphylactic shock and died.  His death prompted his father to spearhead an effort that became known as “Elijah’s Law,” which was passed in the State of New York in 2019.

Since then it has also become law in Illinois and Virginia and as an ordinance in Kansas City. Missouri is one of five states in which it is proposed this year.

      It is found in House Bill 2552, which would allow doctors to prescribe epinephrine auto-injectors, more commonly known as “epi-pens,” to childcare facilities.  It would also require licensed childcare providers to adopt a policy on allergy prevention and response, with a special emphasis on deadly food-borne allergies. 

      The bill’s sponsor, Representative Jim Schulte (R-New Bloomfield), presented it last week to the House Committee on Healthcare Reform.

      “It pertains to a young boy who had a [dairy]* allergy.  His mother was aware of it and she had told the daycare provider about it and even provided an epi-pen for them, however, they had no training and by the time they realized what was going on and called an ambulance, he had already passed away.  His family is leading this.  I think they’re in seven states now, with this bill,” Schulte told his fellow legislators.

     There are some concerns among lawmakers, including a question of cost.  Epi-pens are expensive, and the bill does not address how the cost for them might be covered.  Schulte said grant programs are available and could apply. 

      Legislators also questioned a provision that would have the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education develop a model policy for allergy prevention and response and a guide for childcare providers.  Some legislators suggest that would be better handled by a different agency.

      Representative Anthony Ealy (D-Grandview) said it doesn’t matter to him from where the policy comes, as long as it is exhaustive.

      “I think that DESE because childcare facilities fall under DESE, they should have a part to play in it, but it does make sense for the Department of Health to also have a voice in it.  I just want the best professionals to be able to create a model,” Ealy said. 

      Committee Chairman Kent Haden (R-Mexico) said those are fair concerns, but at the heart of the bill is a serious issue that deserves attention.

      “It’s a catch-22 sometimes we need to be aware of.  I had a neighbor, a young lady that went on a float trip and ate muffins that had sesame seeds on them and died on the float trip … an allergy is a very severe, death threatening event,” Haden said.

      Also sponsoring the same language is Representative Emily Weber (D-Kansas City), who said regardless of whether this bill becomes law, she hopes it raises awareness among the state’s childcare facilities. 

      “I would hope that daycare centers would hear a bill like this and start working on their procedures, on what happens if they accept a child who has horrible, maybe peanut allergies, which is like the most common one.  I would hope that they would kind of move together and figure out their solution and their procedures on what to do,” Weber said. 

      “When something like [what happened to Elijah] happens, it can happen in an instant, and it’s all about timing at that point.  Making sure you have the procedure:  okay, the child’s going into anaphylactic shock, what do we do next?  Where’s the epi-pen?  Who do we call?  Things like that.”

      Similar proposals were filed by Weber and Ealy last year but neither was the subject of a hearing.  Both say they are just glad to see the language getting traction, with Schulte’s version.

      “I’m super excited about that.  I’m so happy that Representative Schulte had a hearing … Representative Haden is a huge supporter of this bill.  I talked to him last session about it … he read my bill and said this is a really good bill,” Weber said.

      The Healthcare Reform Committee has not voted on Schulte’s bill. Weber’s version is House Bill 2036, and Ealy’s version is House Bill 2364.

Radio stations note: “Alavi” in Elijah-Alavi Silvera is pronounced like “Allah-vee”

Note to reporters: though sometimes reported otherwise, Elijah-Alavi Silvera had an allergy to dairy, not peanuts. This was confirmed by his father, Thomas.