Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania is the most interesting state in the country on epilepsy policy right now, because two things are happening at once.
In March 2026, the seizure-free driving period dropped from six months to three, a change decades in the making, and one that puts Pennsylvania in line with what neurologists actually recommend.
And Pennsylvania still requires your doctor to report you to the state. Within ten days. By law.
Meanwhile, a bill requiring seizure first aid training in every school passed the state House in June 2026 and is sitting in the Senate. That one is live. You can move it.
Representation
John Fetterman, U.S. Senator (R-PA) | (202) 224-4254
David McCormick, U.S. Senator (R-PA) | (202) 224-6324
Go Here To Find Your Congressional Representative
Driving Laws
The rules just got better.
After a seizure, under 67 Pa. Code § 83.4, you are not qualified to drive unless a licensed physician reports that you have been free from seizure for at least three months, with or without medication. Auras alone don't disqualify you.
That three-month figure is new. The regulation set the period at 12 months in 1979, dropped it to six months in 2004, and held there until this year. PennDOT's Medical Advisory Board voted in October 2023 to move it to three months, and it took effect in March 2026. The change was driven in part by Dr. Andrea Synowiec of Allegheny Health Network, a member of the Medical Advisory Board, and supported by both the Epilepsy Association of Western and Central PA and the Epilepsy Foundation of Eastern Pennsylvania.
PennDOT's Medical Advisory Board advised that patients were not telling their doctors about seizures to avoid a six-month license recall, and that a shorter interval would make people more likely to disclose—which would get them better medical care.
In other words, the state acknowledged in writing that the old rule was making people lie to their doctors.
Now the part that hasn't changed. Under 75 Pa.C.S. § 1518(b), all medical providers must report to PennDOT within ten days, in writing, the full name, address, and date of birth of any patient 15 or older diagnosed with a condition that could impair their ability to drive safely. T
The American Academy of Neurology opposes mandatory reporting. Its position is that requiring healthcare providers to report does not reduce accidents or fatalities, but does increase the likelihood of people driving without a license and withholding information about seizures from their doctors.
Pennsylvania fixed the seizure-free interval and kept the reporting mandate.
School Laws
Act 84 of 2021 was signed on November 17, 2021, and took effect at the start of the 2022–23 school year. It added Section 1414.11 to the Public School Code, covering seizure recognition and related first aid training, and the Department of Health approves the qualifying courses.
But under current law, that training is optional.
H.B. 1045, sponsored by Rep. Carol Kazeem (D-Delaware County) and developed with the Epilepsy Foundation of Eastern Pennsylvania, would make it mandatory — requiring school nurses and school professional employees with direct student contact to complete Department of Health-approved training every two years.
It passed the Pennsylvania House on June 1, 2026, by a vote of 129 to 71. It is now in the state Senate.
More than 129,000 Pennsylvanians have epilepsy. This bill is one chamber away.
Call your state senator. Ask them where they stand on H.B. 1045. Ask for a yes.
Support
Epilepsy Association of Western and Central PA was founded in 1972 by parents and family members. It is an independent 501(c)(3) and a member of Epilepsy Alliance America. It covers 49 counties from offices in Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, and Erie, funded partly by a contract with the PA Department of Health and a CDC grant. Programs include virtual adult support groups, Camp Frog, emergency medication assistance, a free CareShare respite program, the Oscar Project (service dogs), help obtaining sleep and movement monitors, high school scholarships, and Project School Alert. Fees can be waived. Interpreters available on request; materials in Spanish.
The Epilepsy Foundation of Eastern Pennsylvania developed H.B. 1045 with Rep. Kazeem—if you want to plug into the school bill fight specifically, that's the door.
Epilepsy Care
Penn Epilepsy Center, Philadelphia — Level 4 adult
University of Pittsburgh Comprehensive Epilepsy Center (UPMC) — Level 4, established 1986, serving as a regional referral center for Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia
UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh Epilepsy Center — Level 4 pediatric, eight-bed monitoring unit
Allegheny General Hospital (AHN), Pittsburgh — Level 4, with clinics also in Erie and Jefferson Hills
Use the comments section to add additional resources for Alaska or review the resources listed above.