AMESBURY — The Friday before Christmas vacation this past year is a day Michael Chace won't soon forget.

Like every other day, Michael's 6-year-old son Andrew boarded the school bus to Amesbury Elementary along with all the other kindergartners.

That's when the day became anything but normal. Andrew, who has several severe allergies to certain foods, including wheat and dairy, had something at breakfast that he shouldn't have, his father explained.

As Michael Chace tells it, during the 15-minute bus ride to school — during which he always sits in the front of the bus — Andrew began to experience an allergic reaction, breaking out in hives. But the bus driver wasn't able to administer any treatment, Chace said.

He rode the rest of the ride to school without any treatment action being taken by the bus driver, Chace said.

Chace says when Andrew got off the bus at school, the building coordinator David St. Germain, immediately recognized the situation and brought him to the school nurse's office where he was given his EpiPen, an auto-injector for emergency treatment of an allergic reaction. He was later transported to the hospital.

"At school, he was definitely taken care of," Chace said. "I feel like he is safe there."

All teachers and staff at Amesbury schools are trained in how to administer an EpiPen during professional development training at the start of the school year. But the incident struck a fear in Chace, who is now pushing for changes statewide in how bus drivers are trained to respond to such emergency situations during the trips to and from school.

Right now, the bus ride is "a gap" in the school day, he said.

"The school bus is an extension of the school day," Chace said. "Every parent should feel safe when their kids are at school and that includes the minute they step on the bus."

Chace and Chaurette say that Amesbury's bus company, First Student — formerly Laidlaw Education Services — has a policy that its drivers will administer first aid, but does not have a policy regarding the use of EpiPens.

That deeply troubles Chace.

"It made me realize that these kids are riding at their own risk," Chace said.

First Student isn't alone. According to an employee at the Salter Bus Lines in Newbury, which serves other school districts in the Greater Newburyport area, that company's bus drivers also do not administer EpiPens, but they are trained in CPR and first aid.

According to school nurse records, there are 14 other students with life-threatening allergies that have EpiPens just at Amesbury Middle School. In 2001, an Amesbury Middle School student with a peanut allergy died after eating nuts in a class.

Andrew doesn't carry an EpiPen on him, but one is kept at the school. After the incident, Chace is advocating for buses to be equipped with EpiPens and for drivers to be trained on how to use them.

An EpiPen is not a cure for an allergic reaction, Chace said, it just gives the person having the reaction more time to get emergency care.

"He could've lost his life," Chace said. "Most deaths occur when EpiPens are delayed or not administered."

Not a local problem

In the weeks following the Dec. 21 incident, Chace contacted the bus company and attended a School Committee where he thanked school officials for their response and voiced concerns about his son's safety on the bus.

Through discussions with Superintendent Charles Chaurette and Amesbury Elementary officials, Chace has developed a new plan for his son, that will include riding on a school van to Amesbury Elementary each day with other students, rather than riding the school bus.

"Amesbury has been very accommodating," Chace said. "I'm content with (the van). The school district has been great in meeting his needs."

The van is owned and used by the district and Andrew can ride it at no additional charge to the Chaces. Kindergartners do not pay a transportation fee.

Howard Anderson, the regional operations manager for First Student bus company, said yesterday the company doesn't have a report of a child having an allergic reaction while on the bus in Amesbury. The company serves all four Amesbury public schools.

"We investigated and there was nothing on our bus," Anderson said.

Anderson declined to comment further, saying their policies are worked out with each individual district.

Chaurette said yesterday that school officials became aware of the allergic reaction when the student got off the bus and the issue was dealt with at the school, which may mean the bus company was not aware of it or given a report of it.

The School Committee is currently drafting a policy relating specifically to EpiPens. Part of the process is researching what other communities have in place, Chaurette said.

"This is not an Amesbury issue; the issue exists everywhere," Chaurette said.

Chaurette said the district's current contract with First Student does not stipulate any policies regarding EpiPen administration by the drivers. That could be discussed in the future during contract renegotiations, he said.

The district does have numerous safety guidelines in place for bus students, Chaurette said. Drivers are trained in CPR and first aid and have radios on the bus to use in case of an emergency to get medical services. Police and fire services are immediately available, he said.

"There are a lot of protocols that are already in place to address the needs of our kids, whatever those needs may be," Chaurette said.

Taking issue statewide

While Chace's own son's routine has changed, he isn't stopping there.

A teacher in Danvers, Chace said he's determined to continue his fight to change the way bus drivers are trained across the state.

"It's a bigger issue," Chace said. "It's a state-wide issue; it's not something exclusive to Amesbury. It just makes sense to have school districts be proactive and have drivers be trained."

Chace has contacted Rep. Michael Costello, D-Newburyport, Rep. Theodore Speliotis, D-Danvers and Sen. Steven Baddour, D-Methuen to advocate for a state-wide policy change.

There is currently a proposed bill before legislators at the Statehouse that, if passed, would require bus drivers to complete a pre-approved first aid course.

Both Costello and Baddour have expressed support.

The bill would require drivers to take a basic first aid course, administered by the Registry of Motor Vehicles. Under the bill, once the course is completed, the driver is exempt from any liability arising from administering emergency first aid services.

Currently, the proposal only applies to new drivers — something the Senate will look to change. The bill could also be amended or the Legislature could work with the Registry to include EpiPen usage as part of the first-aid course.

"We're working that part out," said Baddour, the chairman of the Joint Committee on Transportation.

Baddour said hearing Chace's story "hit home."

"It could be any one of our kids," he said. "Clearly, in today's society, with all of the medical needs of students, requiring them to know how to use an EpiPen is reasonable. In these types of situations, seconds make a difference."

Costello was out of the state Thursday, but his Chief of Staff Adam Martignetti said recent incidents have brought to light the importance of training bus drivers in all types of first aid.

"When Mr. Chace called the office, it was the first time we had been approached about the issue," Martignetti said. "We did some research and found out about the two bills out there."

Another measure being looked at by legislators would require monitors to be on buses.

"Teachers take first aid courses and learn how to administer EpiPens, it makes sense to require bus drivers to undergo similar training," Martignetti said.

For Chace, he remains worried about other students with allergies who take the bus.

"There's quite a few other kids out there with allergies," he said.

And the recent case of a 5-year-old boy in Marlborough who choked while on the school bus "was a big push" for Chace to continue advocating for bus safety, he said.

"It was sadly ironic that the two happened close together," Chace said.