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Kansas State University

Lafene Health Center
Kansas State University
1105 Sunset Avenue
Manhattan, KS 66502-3761
785-532-6544
lafene@k-state.edu

Tuberculosis Prevention Policy

Tuberculosis continues to be a highly infectious, potentially life threatening disease. Because of the increase in tuberculosis worldwide, and in response to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) recommendations regarding strategies for TB control, Kansas State University (K-State) has implemented the following prevention and treatment policies and recommendations.

Testing requirements

Mantoux tuberculin skin testing is required for the following groups of students at K-State.  (A chest x-ray will be required if the skin test is positive.)

Important: Please be certain to inform the health center staff if you have EVER had a positive TB skin test or have EVER been treated for TB. In either case, you should not receive the TB skin test.

  1. New and re-entering foreign-born, nonimmigrant undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral students from high risk countries (see definition).
  2. Any K-State student who has participated in international travel to a high-risk area and remained in a high-risk area (see definition below) for greater than 4 months as part of an official university program. Testing should be done 6-12 weeks after the student's return. (Students and staff who use the health center's travel clinic will be sent a reminder card upon return to K-State.)
  3. Any K-State student who has lived in a high-risk area (see definition) for greater than four months, who has not had subsequent PPD testing.
  4. Graduate students from high-risk countries who were previously enrolled as undergraduates at K-State must undergo a verbal screening, even if previously tested as an undergraduate.

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Testing recommendations

Mantoux tuberculin skin testing is recommended for the following groups at K-State. (A chest x-ray will be recommended if the skin test is positive.)

  1. Spouses and accompanying adults of persons in category 1 through 4 above.
  2. Any student not included in the groups listed above who has traveled to a high-risk area within the past year.
  3. Any faculty or staff member who has traveled to a high-risk area within the past year. Faculty and staff may access TB skin testing through their regular health care provider, or through Lafene Allergy/Immunization Clinic.
  4. All nonimmigrant visiting scholars from high-risk countries (see definition).
  5. Persons with positive IPPD skin tests will be asked to have their children (if any) evaluated at the Riley County Health Department for possible tuberculosis.

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Enforcement

The Registrar's Office will place a hold on registration of all students who fall into the required testing categories. Lafene Health Center staff will remove this hold upon completion of testing requirements. Students will be able to enroll in K-State courses when the hold is removed.

The policy requires testing of all students that have spent more than four months in a country with a high incidence of tuberculosis. International students from high risk countries shall not be allowed to enroll until they have completed testing. Exchange students are an exception. They may enroll without testing, but shall be disenrolled on the first day of classes if they have not previously completed testing. This testing must be done in the United States. Test results from outside the United States shall not be accepted. To ensure that you can enroll on time, go to Lafene Health Center, (the student health center adjacent to campus at 1105 Sunset Avenue) for testing as soon as you arrive at K-State. There is a charge for the skin test. If your skin test is positive, you shall be required to have a chest x-ray for which there is also a charge. If you are tested in the United States prior to arriving at Kansas State University, bring the test results to Lafene Health Center as soon as you arrive at K-State.

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Definition of high-risk country*

All countries of the world are high risk with the EXCEPTION of the following countries. Students from these countries do not have to be tested. STUDENTS FROM ANY COUNTRY NOT LISTED BELOW MUST BE TESTED.

American Region:
  • Canada
  • Jamaica
  • St Kitts and Nevis
  • Saint Lucia
  • USA
  • Virgin Islands (USA)
European Region:
  • Belgium
  • Denmark
  • Finland
  • France
  • Germany
  • Greece
  • Iceland
  • Ireland
  • Italy
  • Liechtenstein
  • Luxembourg
  • Malta
  • Monaco
  • Netherlands
  • Norway
  • Sweden
  • Switzerland
  • United Kingdom
Western Pacific Region:
  • American Samoa
  • Australia
  • New Zealand

Sources: American College Health Association in conjunction with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization

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Tuberculosis testing/treatment and cost

A word of caution: Health care is very expensive in the United States. International students who enroll as first-time students at Kansas State University are required to have health insurance. If an abnormality is found on TB testing, it is important that you have purchased health insurance prior to testing. You shall not receive insurance reimbursement for medical charges if the policy is not in effect prior to the testing. Please purchase health insurance prior to or as soon as you arrive at K-State. If you wish to purchase the Kansas Board of Regents sponsored policy, contact the representative at 785.532.6546. Plan specifics are at Statewide Student Insurance Program.

Adopted November 28, 2000 (Effective August 1, 2001)

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