School board OKs new policy on parental consent for medical needs

Teenage students attending San Diego public schools will no longer need parental consent to leave campus for confidential medical appointments, including those for pregnancy, abortion and drug counseling.

The San Diego Unified Board of Education unanimously adopted the revised policy Tuesday night, without any opposition or debate, The San Diego Union- Tribune reported.

The move brings the district in sync with state law, state attorney general opinions and practices already in place at many schools throughout the district, Marge Kleinsmith, who oversees sex education for the district, told the newspaper.

“Some school nurses and staff have been allowing students to be released for these kinds of appointments — could be for suicide counseling, could be for an STD test, could be for pregnancy, could be for a lot of things — because they knew state law said they could,’’ Kleinsmith said.

“Others have been strict about not letting students do this. This gives us much-needed clarity.’’