Emergency Preparedness and Response Planning, and Practice Drills

(a) Programs shall ensure that for each child, upon the child’s first day in attendance in the program, there is a “Child Care Registration and Emergency Information for License Exempt Programs” ( May 2023) form completed and signed by the parent, on file, which contains:

(1) Full legal name of the child;

(2) Child’s date of birth;

(3) Date of enrollment in the program;

(4) The name, physical address, and mailing address of the parent responsible for the child;

(5) Telephone numbers for the child’s parent(s) and instructions as to how the parent(s) can be contacted during the hours that the child is at the program;

(6) Email addresses for the parent(s), if available;

(7) The name, address, telephone number, and relationship of at least one person who will assume responsibility for the child, if for any reason, the parent(s) cannot be reached immediately in an emergency;

(8) Any chronic conditions, allergies, or medications to be administered in the event of sudden illness or injury;

(9) Written parental permission for first aid treatment;

(10) Written parental permission for emergency medical transportation and treatment;

(11) The name and telephone number of each child’s physician or health care provider; and

(12) Names, addresses, telephone numbers, and relationships of any person(s) other than parent(s) who are authorized to remove the child from the program.

(b) Programs shall be equipped with a telephone that is operable and accessible to all staff during all operating hours for incoming and outgoing calls.

(c) Pursuant to 45 CFR Part 98.41, programs shall develop an emergency operations plan (EOP) for responding to natural, human-caused, or technological incidences, which shall contain procedures including, but not limited to:

(1) Evacuation;

(2) Relocation;

(3) Shelter-in-place;

(4) Lockdown;

(5) Communication and reunification with families;

(6) Continuity of operations;

(7) Accommodations of children with disabilities; and

(8) Accommodations of children with chronic medical conditions.

(d) In order to assure that all staff, volunteers, and children are familiar with all the EOP drills listed in (c) above, programs shall:

(1) Practice evacuation and relocation once per year with all child care staff, including volunteers;

(2) Practice at least 2 other components of their EOP with all child care staff, including volunteers, and children each calendar year; and

(3) Review all EOP response actions with all staff and volunteers, at least twice each calendar year.

(e) Programs shall record and maintain on file for review, a log of the practice drills and verification of the requirements in (d) above, which includes:

(1) The date and time of the drill;

(2) The type of drill practiced or drill reviewed;

(3) The method of review or practice, such as in-person or review of online training;

(4) The name of all staff and volunteers that participated in the review or drill; and

(5) The signature and date of the individual conducting the review or drill.

(f) Upon enrollment, programs shall provide families with information from the EOP that addresses communication and reunification procedures, as specified in (c)(5) above.

(g) Programs shall conduct at least one fire drill each month the program is in operation in accordance with the following:

(1) All children and staff shall evacuate the building during each fire drill; and

(2) Staff shall check daily attendance records to ensure that all children and staff are accounted for after the building is evacuated.

(h) Programs shall complete a written record of fire drills which shall:

(1) Be maintained on file at the program for one year; and

(2) Be available for review by the department.

(i) The written record of fire drills required under (h) above shall include at least the following:

(1) The date and time the drill was conducted;

(2) The exits used;

(3) The number of children evacuated and total number of people in the building at the time of the drill;

(4) The amount of time taken to evacuate the building; and

(5) The name of the person conducting the drill.

(j) Programs shall conduct a fire drill in the presence of a representative of the department upon request.

(k) If a child goes missing while in the care of the program, staff shall call emergency police services, or 911, as soon as staff have determined that the child cannot be promptly located on the premises of the child care program.

(l) Programs shall report any occurrence of a missing child as described in (k) above to the department within 24 hours.

(n) If a child dies while in child care the program shall:

(1) Notify emergency personnel and the child’s parent immediately;

(2) Notify the department of the death within 24 hours of the incident; and

(3) Provide to the department a written report which details the circumstances which led up to the death within 72 hours of the incident.

(o) In addition to the reporting requirements under (n) above, the program shall, upon request, provide the department with any available information regarding the death.

Source. #12536, eff 5-24-18; ss by #13650, eff 5-25-23