Several states have loosened the restriction on using sunscreen, to allow kids use them at school. School systems in the U.S. consider sunscreen as an over-the-counter medication.
Washington states followed Arizona, Utah, Oregon, Texas, New York and California to free students to use sunscreen at schools, as reported by ABC News. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee recently signed the bill to allow students to use the sunscreen at school to protect themselves from skin cancer.
Similar legislation is currently moving forward in Rhode Island and Louisiana. While in Florida, the legislation to allow sunscreen at school is awaiting the governor signature. The only opposition in Florida came from the schools' nurses, who stated their concern that the sunscreen lotion can cause an allergic reaction.
In the U.S., many school system categorized sunscreen as an over-the-counter medication due to the regulation from Food and Drug Administration that classified sunscreen as a drug product. Therefore, applying the sunscreen at school requires the student to have a doctor's note. However, according to the sponsor of the new legislation, a Republican Sen. Ann Rivers of La Center, Clark County, the bill to allow sunscreen at school is something unnecessary.
Really, do we really need a bill for this?" Sen. Rivers said last month after the bill to allow sunscreen at school passed the Senate last in April, as quoted by Seattle Times. "It’s just kind of a no-brainer."
The issue of sunscreen at school is not something that people care about. However, according to Sen. Rivers, her constituents and colleagues said that their children had suffered sunburn after coming back from field trips. Therefore she decided to sponsor the Senate Bill 5404 that exempt sunscreen to be categorized as a drug product, allowing students to use sunscreen at school, field trips and school events. Watch the explanation of the importance of putting on sunscreen outdoor below:
