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(14.19) In addition to medication administration, what other health care services must be provided to a student who has a Section 504 plan?

(14.19) In addition to medication administration, what other health care services must be provided to a student who has a Section 504 plan?

A student with a 504 plan can receive health care services such as suctioning and catheterization.  A district may argue that the provision of these health care services goes beyond “reasonable” in terms of its duty to provide “reasonable accommodations.”  OCR has rejected the “reasonable accommodation” standard when analyzing whether a district has provided FAPE under Section 504.  [Letter to Zirkel, 20 IDELR 134 (1993); Madera (CA) Unified School District, 22 IDELR 510 (E.D. Penn. 1995); Bonita (CA) Unified School District, 39 IDELR 8 (W.D. Cal. 2003).]  The same analysis should apply to a student needing health care services in order to attend school — and attend in the least restrictive environment — under Section 504.