(a) Any person initially employed in a public school or reemployed in a public school after an absence of more than one school year shall provide to the superintendent a certificate certifying that the person does not have any physical or mental disease, including tuberculosis in the communicable form or other communicable disease, that would impair the person’s ability to perform his or her duties effectively. A local board or a superintendent may require any school employee to take a physical examination when considered necessary.

Any public school employee who has been absent for more than 40 successive school days because of a communicable disease shall, before returning to work, provide to the superintendent a certificate certifying that the individual is free from any communicable disease.

(b) One of the following individuals shall prepare any certificate required under this section:

(1) A physician licensed to practice in North Carolina.

Attorney's Note

Under the N.C. Gen. Statutes, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
Class 1 misdemeanorup to 120 days
For details, see § 15A-1340.23

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Terms Used In North Carolina General Statutes 115C-323

  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • following: when used by way of reference to any section of a statute, shall be construed to mean the section next preceding or next following that in which such reference is made; unless when some other section is expressly designated in such reference. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, shall be construed to extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories, so called; and the words "United States" shall be construed to include the said district and territories and all dependencies. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
  • Superintendent: means the superintendent of schools of a public school system or, in his absence, the person designated to fulfill his functions. See North Carolina General Statutes 115C-5

(2) A nurse practitioner approved under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 90-18(14).

(3) A physician’s assistant licensed to practice in North Carolina.

(c) Notwithstanding subsection (b) of this section, in the case of a person initially employed in a public school, any of the following who holds a current unrestricted license or registration in another state may prepare the certificate so long as evidence of that license or registration is on the certificate:

(1) A physician.

(2) A nurse practitioner.

(3) A physician’s assistant.

(d) The certificate shall be prepared on a form supplied by the Superintendent of Public Instruction. The certificate shall be issued only after a physical examination has been conducted, at the time of the certification, in accordance with rules adopted by the Superintendent of Public Instruction, with approval of the Secretary of Health and Human Services. These rules may require an X-ray chest examination for all new employees of the public school system.

(e) It shall be the duty of the superintendent of the school in which the person is employed to enforce the provisions of this section. Any person violating any of the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. (1955, c. 1372, art. 17, s. 1; 1957, c. 1357, ss. 2, 14; 1973, c. 476, s. 128; 1975, c. 72; 1981, c. 423, s. 1; 1985 (Reg. Sess., 1986), c. 975, s. 20; 1991, c. 342, s. 4; 1993, c. 539, s. 886; 1994, Ex. Sess., c. 24, s. 14(c); 1997-443, s. 11A.50; 2001-118, s. 1.)