S.B. No. 811
 
AN ACT
relating to requiring the Department of State Health Services to
allow health care providers to use certain vaccines in the vaccines
for children program and to the procurement of those vaccines.
       BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
       SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 161, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 161.0102 to read as follows:
       Sec. 161.0102.  VACCINES FOR CHILDREN PROGRAM; INFLUENZA
VACCINES.  (a)  In this section, "vaccines for children program"
means the program operated by the department under authority of 42
U.S.C. Section 1396s, as amended.
       (b)  The department shall allow each health care provider
participating in the vaccines for children program to:
             (1)  select influenza vaccines from the list of all
influenza vaccines that:
                   (A)  are approved by the United States Food and
Drug Administration and recommended by the federal Advisory
Committee on Immunization Practices; and
                   (B)  are either:
                         (i)  within the limits of the vaccines
annually allocated by the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention of the United States Public Health Service to the
department for the vaccines for children program; or
                         (ii)  not offered in the annual allocation
under Subparagraph (i), but are available from the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention of the United States Public Health
Service and for which the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention awards to the department additional funds; and
             (2)  use both inactivated influenza vaccines and live,
attenuated influenza vaccines.
       SECTION 2.  Subchapter A, Chapter 161, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 161.0103 to read as follows:
       Sec. 161.0103.  VACCINES FOR CHILDREN PROGRAM; EQUIVALENT
VACCINES.  (a)  In this section:
             (1)  "Vaccines for children program" means the program
operated by the department under authority of 42 U.S.C. Section
1396s.
             (2)  "Equivalent vaccines" means two or more vaccines,
excluding the influenza vaccine, that protect a recipient of a
vaccine against the same infection or infections, that require the
same number of doses, and that have similar safety and efficacy
profiles and which are recommended for comparable populations.
       (b)  Except as provided by Subsection (d), where two or more
manufacturers produce equivalent vaccines, the department shall
procure an equal supply of the vaccine from each manufacturer.
       (c)  An equivalent vaccine must be:
             (1)  approved by the United States Food and Drug
Administration;
             (2)  recommended by the federal Advisory Committee on
Immunization Practices; and
             (3)  made available to the department by the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States Public
Health Service.
       (d)  The department shall procure an equal supply of each
equivalent vaccine under Subsection (b) only if the cost to the
department of providing each equivalent vaccine is not more than
110 percent of the lowest-priced equivalent vaccine.
       SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2007.
______________________________    ______________________________
President of the Senate             Speaker of the House
       I hereby certify that S.B. No. 811 passed the Senate on
April 19, 2007, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0; and that
the Senate concurred in House amendments on May 18, 2007, by the
following vote: Yeas 29, Nays 0.
______________________________ 
   Secretary of the Senate
       I hereby certify that S.B. No. 811 passed the House, with
amendments, on May 15, 2007, by the following vote: Yeas 140,
Nays 0, one present not voting.
______________________________ 
   Chief Clerk of the House
Approved:
______________________________ 
______________________________ 
            Date
______________________________ 
______________________________ 
          Governor