A physical examination must be completed for each applicant. A physical examination completed within the twelve months preceding the application is acceptable. The department shall provide the forms that the applicant shall use in obtaining the physical examination. The forms must be completed by the attending physician, physician's assistant, or certified nurse practitioner and returned to the department. Each member of the applicant's household must provide a health history, including any history of drug or alcohol abuse or treatment, and must disclose any current mental health or drug or alcohol abuse issues. If the applicant has applied to become a kinship foster parent, no physical health examination is required.

The applicant shall present evidence to the department that each household member under the age of eighteen meets the immunization requirements of the Department of Health, unless an immunization is contrary to the household member's health, as documented by a licensed health care professional, or the application provides a signed written statement that the household member adheres to a religious doctrine whose teachings are opposed to the immunization. The minimum Department of Health immunization requirements for a child aged four months to six years are: diphtheria, tetanus, and acellular pertussis; poliovirus; measles, mumps, and rubella; and varicella. The minimum Department of Health immunization requirements for a child aged seven to eighteen are: tetanus, diphtheria, and acellular pertussis and meningococcal ACYW. Each household member who will have contact with an infant or child with health issues that make the infant or child vulnerable to a serious or life-threatening condition if the infant or child is exposed to the influenza virus must receive an annual influenza vaccine and have an up-to-date pertussis vaccine.

If questions arise during the adoptive home study, required by SDCL 25-6-9.1, concerning the applicant's medical condition or the medical condition of another household member, the department may require additional medical evaluations.

Cross-References:

Communicable disease control, article 44:20.

Health and safety requirements, 45 C.F.R. § 98.41.

Note: Additional recommended Department of Health immunizations include: rotavirus, haemophilus influenzae Type b, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, pneumococcal, and influenza

Source: 2 SDR 62, effective April 5, 1976; 7 SDR 23, effective September 18, 1980; 7 SDR 66, 7 SDR 89, effective July 1, 1981; 17 SDR 157, effective April 23, 1991; 35 SDR 187, effective February 11, 2009; 44 SDR 94, effective December 4, 2017; 47 SDR 24, effective September 10, 2020 ; 51 SDR 127, effective June 1, 2025 .

General Authority: SDCL 26-4-9.1 .

Law Implemented: SDCL 26-4-9.1 .

Prior versions effective: 2020-09-10, 2017-12-04, 2009-02-11.