The Respiratory Care Board of California (RCB) approved a regulation that replaces the previous practice of using Licensed Vocational Nurses (LVNs) and other qualified designated personnel to provide respiratory care. These services include suctioning and tracheostomy care.
LVNs have been able to perform suctioning support and basic respiratory care in educational settings since 2001. Of the 10 to 12 percent of California students who have special healthcare needs, about 1 to 3 percent require suctioning support or trach care services and licensed vocational nurses provide this critical support.
ACSA and other statewide partners, who include the California School Nurses Organization, have been working to pass SB 389 (Ochoa Bogh), which adds clarification for the role of LVNs working in schools under the supervision of a credentialed school nurse to provide this type of care.
The regulations go into effect Oct. 1, 2025. Advocacy from ACSA and other statewide partners and LEAs have successfully convinced the Respiratory Care Board to issue a communication affirming that no enforcement action will be taken against schools under these new regulations.
Read the letter below.
