The Palm Beach County student medication authorization form — officially the Authorization for Medication/Treatment Form — is what lets school staff give your child prescription or over-the-counter medication during the school day. Both the prescribing physician and the parent or legal guardian must sign it before the school will accept or administer anything, and a new form is required every school year and any time the medication or dosage changes.1Health Care District of Palm Beach County. Student Medication Planning
Where to Get the Form
The Authorization for Medication/Treatment Form is available at your child’s physician’s office.1Health Care District of Palm Beach County. Student Medication Planning The school health room or front office can also give you a copy.
Note that this is a different document from the Parent/Guardian Consent for School Health Services (PBSD 2667), which covers general health services like treatment for a headache or minor illness at school.2The School District of Palm Beach County. School Health Services Consent Form If your child needs both routine health services and scheduled medication, you may need both forms on file.
When You Need a New Form
You need a completed authorization form on file before your child takes the first dose of anything at school. Florida law requires written authorization for prescription medication administered by school staff,3Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 1006.062 – Administration of Medication and Provision of Medical Services by District School Board Personnel and Palm Beach County extends the requirement to over-the-counter products like pain relievers and allergy medicine.1Health Care District of Palm Beach County. Student Medication Planning
The form must be renewed every school year. You’ll also need a new form if the doctor changes the medication or the dose. A separate form is required for each medication your child takes at school.1Health Care District of Palm Beach County. Student Medication Planning
What to Fill In
Student Information
Enter the student’s full legal name and date of birth exactly as they appear in the school’s records. If a student ID is requested, you can find it on a report card, on registration paperwork, or by calling the school.
Physician’s Orders
The prescribing physician completes the medical section. It asks for:
- The exact brand or generic name of the medication
- The dose to be given each time
- How the medication is taken (orally, by inhaler, injection, topically, and so on)
- The specific time of day the dose is needed, or, for an as-needed medication, the symptoms that should trigger a dose
- How long the medication should be given — through the end of the school year, for a set number of weeks, or until further notice
The physician signs the form for each medication.
Parent or Guardian Signature
The parent or legal guardian signs to grant permission for school staff to follow the physician’s instructions. Without both signatures, the school will not accept the medication.1Health Care District of Palm Beach County. Student Medication Planning This is the step people most often miss. Parents sometimes bring the medication in before the doctor has signed, which means a return trip.
Delivering the Medication to School
A parent or guardian has to hand-deliver the medication to the school’s health room. Students cannot transport medication themselves, on the bus or in a backpack.4The School District of Palm Beach County. Policy 5.321 – Administration of Student Medication/Treatment When you drop it off, health room staff will count the pills or doses with you and both of you co-sign for the delivery.1Health Care District of Palm Beach County. Student Medication Planning
Prescription Medication
Prescription medication must arrive in its original pharmacy container with a legible, unexpired pharmacy label showing the student’s name, the physician’s name, the medication name, dose, and administration instructions, the prescription number if applicable, the prescription date, and the expiration date.
Every detail on the pharmacy label has to match the physician’s written orders on the authorization form. If they don’t match, the school cannot accept the medication.4The School District of Palm Beach County. Policy 5.321 – Administration of Student Medication/Treatment The most common mismatch is a dose change the doctor ordered but the pharmacy hasn’t reprinted on the label. Ask the pharmacy to print a current label before you bring the medication in.
Over-the-Counter Medication
Over-the-counter medication must be in its original, unopened container, must not be expired, and must be labeled with the student’s name.1Health Care District of Palm Beach County. Student Medication Planning Write your child’s name on the box or bottle with a permanent marker before you drop it off.
Medications a Student Can Carry
Florida law allows some students to carry and self-administer specific medications rather than surrender them to the health room. Each of these still requires a completed authorization form with both physician and parent approval.
- Asthmatic students may carry a metered-dose inhaler with a short-acting bronchodilator, with written parent and physician approval filed with the school principal.5Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 1002.20 – K-12 Student and Parent Rights
- Students at risk for life-threatening allergic reactions may carry a single-dose epinephrine auto-injector (not a two-dose delivery system) and self-administer at school, at school-sponsored activities, or in transit.5Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 1002.20 – K-12 Student and Parent Rights
- Students diagnosed with cystic fibrosis or pancreatic insufficiency may carry and self-administer prescribed pancreatic enzyme supplements with parent authorization.4The School District of Palm Beach County. Policy 5.321 – Administration of Student Medication/Treatment
- With written parent consent, students may possess and self-administer an FDA-regulated over-the-counter headache medication.4The School District of Palm Beach County. Policy 5.321 – Administration of Student Medication/Treatment
If your child self-carries an inhaler or epinephrine auto-injector, district policy also requires you to provide a recent photograph each school year.4The School District of Palm Beach County. Policy 5.321 – Administration of Student Medication/Treatment
Field Trips
An active authorization form covers off-campus school activities, not just the regular school day. The principal designates a staff member trained by a school nurse to administer the medication during the trip.4The School District of Palm Beach County. Policy 5.321 – Administration of Student Medication/Treatment You don’t need a separate form for the trip as long as the one on file is current, but check in with the school nurse a few days ahead to head off any last-minute problems.
Picking Up Medication at the End of the Year
You are responsible for picking up any leftover medication when it is no longer needed or at the end of the school year. Medication not retrieved within two days after the last day of school is destroyed.4The School District of Palm Beach County. Policy 5.321 – Administration of Student Medication/Treatment If your child takes a controlled substance such as an ADHD medication, set a reminder. The window is short and the school will not hold it longer.