House committee advances disease-control update, approves changes to school immunization rules and hepatitis C screening

House Health and Human Services Committee members voted to advance House Bill 25-1027 on a 10-2 roll call after adopting Amendment L001, which sets a 30-day statutory window for school-entry immunization compliance and makes multiple administrative changes to Colorado disease-control statutes.

The bill’s sponsors said the package is intended to streamline the state’s emergency public-health governance, reduce burdens on families and schools, and align screening requirements with current federal guidance.

Representative Brianna Gilchrist, a co-sponsor, told the committee, “This bill would improve how the state responds to disease outbreaks and other emergencies.” The measure repeals the governor’s expert emergency epidemic response committee—commonly referred to in testimony as the GURC—and transfers authorities and oversight responsibilities to existing bodies, primarily the Board of Health and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE). Diana Herrero, deputy director for disease control and public health response at CDPHE, said the change is intended to increase transparency because the Board of Health “accepts testimony from the public where the GURC does not.”

The bill also makes these substantive changes: - Extends the statutory time a student has to demonstrate compliance with school-entry immunization requirements from 14 days to no more than 30 days (Amendment L001 inserted that limit explicitly). - Expands which providers may certify immunization records so physician assistants can sign certificates where statute previously limited signatories. - Aligns hepatitis C screening in statute with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendation to offer screening to all adults 18 and older and to pregnant people, instead of restricting routine screening to people born between 1945 and 1965. - Repeals or consolidates duplicative student-immunization provisions, extends the timeline for schools to distribute annual immunization letters, and adjusts the due date for the Healthcare Associated Infections report.

Proponents included medical and public-health organizations and school-nurse representatives. Richard Butner of the Colorado Hospital Association said the bill “builds on [pandemic] lessons by ensuring that future emergency response strategies reflect the needs of both public health agencies and frontline health care providers.” Diana Protopapa read testimony from the Colorado Association of School Nurses noting mixed views among nurses but saying many understood the reason for extending the compliance window. Pediatrician David Higgins, representing the American Academy of Pediatrics Colorado chapter, said his organization supports the bill as amended and that Amendment L001 provides “a clear statutory time frame of no more than 30 days.”

Opponents and commenters raised concerns about concentrating authority in CDPHE and the Board of Health, data privacy and potential Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) violations if student information is shared, the limited stakeholder process and fiscal transparency, and preserving opportunities for public testimony. Resident Mike Rollick questioned how subject-matter experts would be selected and whether citizens would have meaningful opportunities to respond to emergency decisions. Julie Denton of Colorado Health Choice Alliance and Pam Long of the parent community raised concerns about a $0 fiscal note and the department’s capacity and transparency. Several speakers requested explicit language preserving the right to exempt under current law; CDPHE’s Herrero and the bill sponsors said the bill “does not impose new vaccine requirements nor does it change the ability to exempt from those school vaccine requirements.”

Committee action and next steps: Representative Gilchrist moved the amendment (L001) that sets the compliance window at up to 30 days; the amendment was seconded and adopted. Gilchrist then moved the bill, as amended, to the committee of the whole with a favorable recommendation. The roll call concluded with the clerk recording the outcome as: 10 yeas, 2 nays, 1 excused; the committee reported the bill to the committee of the whole.

Why it matters: Supporters said the changes reduce administrative confusion, expand access to hepatitis C screening consistent with CDC guidance and ease barriers—especially in rural areas—by allowing additional providers to sign routine immunization certificates and by lengthening the compliance window. Opponents warned the shifts could centralize decision-making and raised privacy, transparency and enforcement questions that they said warrant more stakeholder review before further action.

The committee’s favorable recommendation sends House Bill 25-1027, as amended, to the committee of the whole for further consideration.