The Texas Senate passed a bill Thursday that will disseminate information about bacterial meningitis to students in Texas public schools and colleges and universities. Authored by state Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, the bill will direct school officials and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to distribute meningitis information to all students.
Meningococcal bacteria cause meningitis by attacking tissues covering the brain and spinal cord.
The bacteria are spread by mucus or saliva, health officials say. In 10 percent of cases, meningococcal meningitis is fatal. Of those who recover, some are brain-damaged, deafened, blinded or disabled. Graves ordered an internal review of travel records, which showed he twice visited his orthodontist in Austin on system airplanes, the Bryan-College Station Eagle reported in a copyright story for Thursday's editions. The review showed that one of the visits was during a business-related trip and the other was not.