4048: Communicable Diseases
The ESU strives to provide a safe environment for both students and staff while safeguarding the rights of all students and employees, including those with communicable diseases. The ESU complies with Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 79-217 to 79-223 and Title 173 Nebraska Administrative Code, Chapter 3.
Definitions. Terms used in this policy have the meanings given in 173 NAC 3-002. A “reportable communicable disease” means a disease that must be reported under 173 NAC, Chapter 1.
Signs and Symptoms; Sending Students Home. Staff will watch for signs and symptoms of contagious or infectious disease. These signs and symptoms include fever, flushed face, headache, body aches, unexplained tiredness, loss of appetite, stomach ache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, convulsions, sore throat, nasal congestion or discharge, unexplained skin eruption, and sore or inflamed eyes. The ESU will notify the parent or guardian of the student’s signs or symptoms. Upon notice, the parent or guardian must immediately cooperate with the ESU to arrange safe transportation home or another appropriate caregiver for the student. The ESU will report any failure to reasonably cooperate with the ESU to the Department of Health and Human Services or local law enforcement as appropriate.
Notice to ESU Authority. When the ESU sends a student home for a suspected contagious or infectious disease, the ESU nursing staff will notify the administrator or designee without delay.
Reports to Public Health. The nurse, or a person acting in the capacity of a nurse, will report each case or suspected case of a reportable communicable disease. The report must go to the local public health department or the Nebraska DHHS Division of Public Health as provided in 173 NAC 1-007.04.
Exclusion From the ESU. The ESU will exclude a student with a confirmed communicable disease for at least the minimum isolation period in Attachment 1 to 173 NAC, Chapter 3. The student must be free of acute signs and symptoms. The student must be fever-free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication before returning to the ESU.
ESU Attendance and Participation in ESU Sponsored Activities. The ESU will provide educational services to a student diagnosed with a communicable disease as required by law. The ESU will restrict the student as needed to prevent the spread of the disease, to protect the student’s health and privacy, and to protect others. Participation in Nebraska School Activities Association (NSAA) events is subject to NSAA rules and provisions.
Infection and Exposure Control Procedures/Universal Precautions. The ESU will monitor the information available through the Federal Centers for Disease Control, the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. This policy and any procedures, universal precautions, or exposure control plan will be modified, if appropriate, based upon the best new medical information provided by the above sources.
Outbreaks. In an outbreak or epidemic of a communicable disease, the administrator may exclude students, reassign students, or close one or more ESU 4 buildings or programs. The administrator will coordinate with the local health department and the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services as needed.
Confidentiality. The ESU will keep information about a person’s communicable disease confidential. The ESU will share information only with staff on a “need-to-know” basis. When the ESU must inform a person about another person’s condition, the ESU will inform that person of the duty to keep the information confidential The ESU will communicate about a student’s communicable disease consistent with that student’s IEP or Section 504 Plan, if any.
Staff Training. Staff will receive training regarding communicable diseases and the requirements of this policy and any adopted procedures as part of the training received under the Workplace Injury Prevention and Safety Committee policy.
Adopted on: April 8, 2019
Reviewed on: March 13, 2023
Revised on: August 10, 2026