1281) is a bill that would amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize grant programs and other initiatives to promote expanded screening of newborns and children for heritable disorders.

There is also bedside testing for hearing loss using evoked auditory potentials[3] and congenital heart defects using pulse oximetry.

As mass spectrometry became more widely available, the technology allowed rapid determination of a number of acylcarnitines and amino acids from a single dried blood spot.

[7] The bill would extend a grant program to evaluate the effectiveness of screening, counseling, or health care services in reducing the morbidity and mortality caused by heritable disorders in newborns and children.

Expands the program to include evaluation of treatment and follow-up care for newborns and their families after screening and diagnosis.

Authorizes the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to continue the Advisory Committee after such time.

[7] The bill would extend requirements for the Secretary to provide for quality assurance of laboratories involved in screening newborns and children for heritable disorders.

[7] The bill would direct the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to award grants to, or enter into cooperative agreements with, eligible entities to develop longitudinal follow-up and tracking programs for newborn screening.

1281 would amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize grant programs and other initiatives to promote expanded screening of newborns and children for heritable disorders.

[1] The Newborn Screening Saves Lives Reauthorization Act of 2014 was introduced into the United States House of Representatives on March 20, 2013 by Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D, CA-40).

Just one small blood sample from the newborn’s foot identifies infants with genetic or other conditions that can be treated quickly and effectively, saving and improving thousands of lives.