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GUIDELINES FOR MANAGING LIFE-THREATENING FOOD ALLERGIES IN ILLINOIS SCHOOLS

Following the successful passing of Illinois House Bill 281 into law in 2009, an ad-hoc committee was formed to develop guidelines for the management of life-threatening food allergies in Illinois schools.  The guidelines were completed in early summer 2010 and can be found here.  All Illinois school districts will be required to implement a policy based on the guidelines by January 1, 2011.

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If you are a parent in a food-allergic family and are visiting our website for the first time, we assume that you love your children and look forward to seeing the kind of adults they will become.  We also know that you struggle with the life-altering, daily challenges facing those who suffer from severe allergies to common foods.

Like millions of other American parents, you may also view food allergy as much more than an inconvenience – to you, it is a matter of life and death. If so, you know the stakes are high. And although you may be a private person by nature, as we certainly were, we are asking you now to step up and become a more public advocate on behalf of your food allergic children.

Please click the appropriate links on the pages of our website and take some concrete steps to help. Join forces with other concerned parents, researchers, educators and experts. Write to your legislators and advocate for increased federal resources for food allergy research and for standardized food allergy protocols in our public schools. Make time for your family to join a scientific study so that your information can help us all find a cure. Contribute to fundraisers and encourage others to contribute as well.

Make your voice heard. Help save children’s lives. Thank you!

HELPFUL LINKS FOR GETTING INVOLVED

Food Allergy Initiative – National 

Food Allergy Initiative – Chicago

Food Allergy Study at Children’s Memorial Hospital Chicago

Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network – National

ILLINOIS FOOD ALLERGY MANAGEMENT IN SCHOOLS

After three long years of hard work by the Illinois food-allergic community, we are happy to announce that the Illinois Food Allergy Bill HB281 has been signed into law!  HB281 provides for the development of a statewide school policy for students with food allergies, and will thereby relieve many food-allergic families from struggling to get the proper attention their children need in order to remain safe at school.

Thank you to all those who worked to make this possible.  We especially thank those Senators and Representatives who sponsored the bill, and Governor Quinn who gave his signature to pass the bill into law.

Summary:  HB0281 / SB0152 - SCH CD-FOOD ALLERGY GUIDELINES (formerly HB5338)

HB0281/ SB0152 require the Illinois State Board of Education, in conjunction with the Department of Public Health, to develop and make available to each school board guidelines for the management of students with life-threatening food allergies.  It also requires each school board to implement a policy based on the guidelines for the management of students with life-threatening food allergies.  It provides a safe school environment for food allergic children. 

Ten states including Arizona, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, Vermont and Washington have already implemented guidelines similar to this bill, providing guidance and expertise to local schools who are dealing with the challenges of educating food allergic children safely in the school environment.

Bills HB0281/ SB0152 contain the same language as bill HB5338 which was unanimously passed by the House and the Senate last session.

Impacts:

• 2.2 Million school aged children in US have food allergies
• 93,000 school aged children in Illinois have food allergies
• 88% of all American schools have children with food allergies
• 95% of school nurses indicated that food allergies were as big a problem as diabetes and nearly equal in prevalence to learning disabilities

Benefits:

• Keeps children with food allergies safe from contact with allergenic foods while at school
• Streamlines school district’s treatment of children with food allergies
• Provides consistent treatment of children with food allergies
• Shares best practices among schools in Illinois
• Minimizes research and resources required by schools to create effective food allergy policies
• Supports and educates school personnel and families to learn more about food allergies
• Formalizes a plan to educate school personnel and provides guidance to them about their responsibilities

Facts about food allergies:

• More than 12 million Americans suffer from food allergies.
• Food allergies kill more than 150 Americans each year and are responsible for 30,000 emergency room visits.
• The number of children under age five in the United States suffering from peanut allergies doubled (between 1997 and 2002).
• There are currently no medications to cure or control food allergies. Strict avoidance of the allergenic food is the only way to avoid a reaction.
• The most common allergens –peanuts, tree nuts, eggs, milk, fish, shellfish, wheat and soy – are staples of our food supply and nearly impossible to avoid completely.
• For some children, even small traces of allergenic foods, as little as a drop of milk left on a school desk from another child’s snack, for instance, can trigger life-threatening anaphylaxis.

It is essential for the well-being of our children that schools are provided with strong and unambiguous guidelines to help them manage food allergies in the most effective and helpful way.  A safe environment is a prerequisite for our children to learn and excel.   All children are entitled to an excellent education and the opportunity to live to be productive citizens.