Sec.19a-79-6a. Health and safety

(a) Food service

(1) Transportation of food(s) not prepared on the premises shall satisfy the minimum requirements of section 19-13-B49 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies.

(2) A nutritionally adequate meal as recommended by The United States Department of Agriculture, 7 Code of Federal Regulations 226.20, as amended, shall be provided by the child day care center or group day care home, or the parent(s) whenever a child remains on the premises for five (5) hours or more.

(A) Children who stay on the premises less than five (5) hours shall have a nutritious snack.

(B) Children who stay on the premises longer than five (5) but less than eight (8) hours shall have one (1) meal and one (1) nutritious snack.

(C) Children who stay on the premises eight (8) hours or more shall have one (1) meal plus two (2) nutritious snacks, or two (2) meals plus one (1) nutritious snack.

(3) There shall be proper refrigeration of no more than forty-five (45) degrees Fahrenheit for perishable foods in all child day care centers and group day care homes and on field trips.

(4) When a child day care center or group day care home provides either meals or snacks, menus shall be prepared at least one (1) week in advance, dated and copies posted in a conspicuous place. Changes shall be documented by the end of the program day. A copy of what was served shall be kept on file for three (3) months.

(5) All areas used for the preparation and serving of meals in child day care centers shall be maintained in accordance with sanitary practices and procedures as set forth in section 19-13-B42 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies.

(6) The kitchen in child day care centers or group day care homes that is used for the preparation and serving of food to children shall be clean, well lighted and ventilated, protected by window screening and provided with hot and cold running water, adequate and safe storage for food and supplies and refrigeration.

(7) Separate hand washing facilities shall be located convenient to the room where food is prepared in child day care centers and group day care homes.

(8) All multi-use eating and drinking utensils shall be thoroughly washed, rinsed and sanitized after each use in child day care centers and group day care homes.

(9) The kitchen in child day care centers or group day care homes shall not be used as a playroom, but may be used for a specific program activity room under supervision. It shall be separated by a door or a gate from the rooms used by the children in the child day care center or group day care home to prevent them from entering the kitchen except under supervision.

(10) Children in child day care centers or group day care homes shall not be left unsupervised during meal preparation.

(11) Children and staff shall wash their hands with soap and water before eating or handling food.

(b) Procedures in case of illness

(1) Staff members shall be knowledgeable about signs and symptoms of childhood illness and shall be responsible for the initial observation of each child upon arrival and continued observation throughout the day for such signs and symptoms.

(2) Any child showing suspicious signs or symptoms of short-term contagious illness shall be placed in a designated isolation area with continual visual supervision by staff. The parent(s) or other authorized adult shall be called immediately to remove the child from the child day care center or group day care home.

(c) The facility shall maintain at least one (1) portable, readily available first aid kit wherever children are in care, including field trips, outdoor play areas and one to remain at the facility if all the children do not attend the field trip. Each kit shall be a closed container for storing first aid supplies, accessible to staff at all times but out of the reach of children. First aid kits shall be restocked after use, and an inventory shall be conducted at least monthly. The first aid kit shall contain at least the following items:

(1) assorted sizes of non medicated adhesive strips;

(2) sterile, individually wrapped, three (3) or four (4) inch gauze squares;

(3) a two (2) inch gauze roller bandage;

(4) one (1) roll of adhesive tape (hypoallergenic);

(5) scissors;

(6) tweezers;

(7) two (2) instant cold packs;

(8) a non-glass thermometer to measure a child's temperature with plastic covers for the thermometer or alcohol to clean the thermometer, or single use Tempa Dots;

(9) two (2) triangular bandages with safety pins;

(10) disposable, nonporous gloves;

(11) a current American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) standard first aid chart, or current (less than five (5) years in print) first aid manual, chart or guide provided by an approved first aid course for children and adults; and

(12) CPR mouth barrier (face shield).

(d) First aid supplies for field trips shall also include:

(1) water;

(2) reliable communication device;

(3) liquid soap;

(4) emergency contact numbers for each child;

(5) medications, as needed, if the program administers medications; and

(6) plastic bags, for storage.

(e) Immunization requirements

(1) A child seeking admission to or attending a child day care center or group day care home shall be protected as age-appropriate by adequate immunization against diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, poliomyelitis, measles, mumps, rubella, hemophilus influenzae type b, hepatitis b if such child was born after December 31, 1993, and varicella if such child was born after December 31, 1996 and against any other disease for which vaccination is recommended in the current schedule for active immunization adopted by the commissioner in accordance with section 19a-7f of the Connecticut General Statutes.

(2) The operator shall admit no child to a child day care center or group day care home unless such child's parent(s) furnishes documentation of age-appropriate immunization, immunization-in-progress or exemption from immunization as specified in subdivision (3) of this subsection. No child shall be permitted to continue to attend a child day care center or group day care home for more than thirty (30) days unless such child continues to meet said requirements of subdivision (3) of this subsection.

(3) For each enrolled child, the operator shall obtain from the child's parent(s) and keep on file at the child day care center or group day care home one or more of the following types of documentation for each of the diseases listed in subdivision (1) of this subsection:

(A) a statement signed and dated by a physician, physician assistant or an advanced practice registered nurse indicating that the child is current or in progress with immunizations according to the schedule adopted by the commissioner in accordance with section 19a-7f of the Connecticut General Statutes and that names the appointment date for the child's next immunization;

(B) a statement signed and dated by a physician, physician assistant or an advanced practice registered nurse indicating that the child has an appointment that will keep the immunizations current or in progress as required by said schedule and that names the date for the child's next immunization;

(C) a statement signed and dated by a physician, physician assistant or an advanced practice registered nurse indicating that the child has laboratory confirmed proof of immunity to natural infection, or, in the case of varicella, a statement signed and dated by a physician, physician assistant or an advanced practice registered nurse indicating that the child has already had chickenpox based on family or medical history;

(D) a statement signed and dated by a physician, physician assistant or an advanced practice registered nurse indicating that the child has a medical contraindication to immunization;

(E) a written statement that immunization is contrary to the religious beliefs and practices of the child or the parent(s) of such child. Such statement shall be signed by the child's parent(s); or

(F) a written statement from the child's parent(s) that the child has been displaced from their place of residence due to a declared state of emergency by a state or federal official who has the authority to make such declaration, and existing immunization records are inaccessible and the child is current with their immunizations, or a statement signed and dated by a physician, physician assistant, or an advanced practice registered nurse indicating that the child has an appointment that shall keep the immunizations current or in progress as required by said schedule.

(4) For each child to whom subparagraph (B) or (F) of subdivision (3) of this section applies, continued enrollment in day care for more than thirty (30) days after the named immunization appointment shall be contingent on the operator receiving written documentation from a physician, physician assistant or an advanced practice registered nurse stating either: that the named appointment was kept and the child received the scheduled immunizations, or that the child was unable to receive the scheduled immunizations for medical reasons and a new appointment date is named.

(Effective July 27, 1993; Amended August 29, 1996; Amended December 28, 1999; Amended November 6, 2008)