or plan to??
is it possible? (I am in IL)
It is set to be mandatory in every state (with maybe 3-4 states allowing you to 'legally' opt out) but if you are planning an out of the hospital birth, how exactly would you be forced to get one? Is it tied to the birth certificate?
I obviously have not discussed this with our Pedi yet but I was wondering what other mamas did in regards to the issue.
TIA
Re: Did anyone opt out of a Newborn Screening?
I'm not really sure why you would want to.
Like pp said I understand opting out of meds or vaccines, but the newborn screen (which, if we're referring to the same thing is checking the palate for a cleft, checking the fontanels, reflexes, patent nostrils, patent anus, intact spine, heart/lung/bowel sounds, etc) I can't think of a reason that you would refuse that.
Do you mean something else by newborn screening?
There are several reasons why I would rather opt out:
1) The federal government lacks both the constitutional authority and the competence to develop a newborn screening program adequate for a nation as large and diverse as the Untied States. The bill which sets this screening into law (S. 1858) violates the Constitution, and may have untended consequences that will weaken the American health care system and further erode medical privacy. (i.e. you can read into what happened in Texas and how a DNA bank had been kept with blood samples of newborns without the parents consent or knowledge) .
2) Screening is a public health initiative that surveys an entire population (or sub-population) for evidence of an illness before it exhibits symptoms. The purpose of screening is to identify those among the apparently well who are suffering from (or who will likely develop) a disease and who are likely to benefit from early detection and intervention, because the screening is applied to the sick and the healthy alike, the screening should minimize the amount of false positives (which it does not). As a result, for many of the conditions that most states screen for, a large majority of the initially positive screening results will turn out to be incorrect. (This happened to us with DS and it lead to nothing but sadness and worrisomeness during the first months of his life, which turned out to be false)
3) Newborn profiling carries risks IMO. Gathering genetic information pre-symptomatically could possibly detect genetic variations in the genome which may suggest an elevated risk for a condition that never actually develops, and to initiate treatment pre-symptomatically may do the baby more harm than good.
4) There is also the danger that screening will lead to a cascade effect, in which genetic risk information of perhaps uncertain validity leads to additional tests and interventions, causing anxiety, extra costs, and even some risk of medical harm, more so if further testing reveals that the original positive result was in fact a mistake.
I can probably go on and on about why I am considering to opt out, if you are interested in pursuing your own research, you may be able to find evidence that proves the contrary or evidence that supports my findings. As with everything else, it all boils down to inform consent.
With that said, has anyone else consider these facts and how did you go about saying NO to the screening??It varies from state to state. I am in IL and here is what my state panel looks like
Endocrine Disorders
Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH)
Metabolic Disorders
Biotinidase deficiency
Phenylketonuria (PKU) / Hyperphenylalaninemia
Citrullinemia (argininosuccinate synthetase deficiency)
2-methylbutyryl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (2MBD)
Short chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (SCAD)
I don't understand how people this paranoid get by on a day-to-day basis.
And usually people cite their C&Ped sources rather than trying to pass them off as original thoughts.
eta: as far as how you go about refusing, a tiny bit of googling revealed this:
Refusal of Newborn Screening
? Parents may refuse newborn screening only on the basis of religious beliefs and practices.
? If parents refuse newborn screening of their infant, parent education about the seriousness of newborn screening disorders should be provided, and the infant?s primary care provider should be informed about the refusal. A written objection statement should be signed by the parents and placed in the infant?s medical record, and a copy of the statement should be sent to Illinois Department of Public Health, Genetics/Newborn Screening Program.
Well, that makes slightly more sense to me than refusing the newborn physical exam, but I still would not refuse it.
I would personally rather go through the anxiety and stress of a false positive test result than even the possibility of putting my child through any of the tested, potentially devastating (but treatable) disorders.
Your reasons strike me as more alarmist and conspiratorial than welfare of your child centered. But, you know... it's your child, do what you think is best.
thanks for the insult, you must live a way happier life than I.
here are just a couple:
https://bioethics.georgetown.edu/pcbe/reports/newborn_screening/chapter1.html
https://www.aapsonline.org/legis/pauls1858.php
Thanks for your finding, unfortunately I have no religious beliefs that prevent me from getting the NB screening, my reasons have been stated in my previous posts.
Government conspiracy mumbo-jumbo over a heel prick and a few drops of blood that can save your child's life?
Maybe you need to go live in that bunker with the person who thinks it's annoying that the government wants to vaccinate us.
No thanks, I rather stay here and annoy people like you!
Frankly, I think it's a moot point bc you're doing a home birth. Have you asked your midwife about it? If the screening is done at your first doctor's visit for the baby, I'd imagine you can talk to them about turning it down, as informed refusal still applies?
DS2 - Oct 2010 (my VBAC baby!)
This is just my random thought on why your hospital/pedi/primary care dr/etc. would want to make sure that all of their bases are covered with newborn screenings or why they would make the opt out process so stringent. My husband is a Dr. (eye dr.) and i cannot tell you the number of people who opt out of having their eyes dilated for one reason or another and then they lose some vision or go blind due to eye diseases.......then they want to sue the pants off of anyone they can find......even the ones who signed waivers opting out still hire lawyers and try to sue (thank god this has never happened to my hubby but he consults with an attorney on some "eye" related cases).
If you feel that some of the tests are unecessary it is your right to opt out. Maybe you could agree to some but opt out of others.
Would I personally opt out of most of the tests.....no.........some of the vaccines right at birth....yes.
Being married to someone who is in the medical field I see the "medical" side of alot of things. My hubby and I are both very much into our natural birth plan and eating organic and living an ecofriendly life (well we are doing the best we can with being ecofriendly) so when it comes to some of the vaccines and things like that for our child I defer to my hubby and trust him 100%. Not all medical professionals are out to "make as much money as possible" and perform useless tests (although there are many that do).
Just my opinion.....good luck with your decision but also discuss with your pedi. why these tests are performed and their necessity.
Thanks for your advice. I too got to be directly exposed to the "medical side of things" given that my mother is an OB/GYN.
As I know that not all medical professionals are "the root of all evil", it is a completely different story once the gov't gets involved.
First of all, newborn screening is run by the state, not the federal government, so constitutional authority has absofuckinglutely nothing to do with it. See here: https://genes-r-us.uthscsa.edu/resources/consumer/statemap.htm
The bill you cited provides for grants to fund screening program and an agency to make recommendations to the states as to which diseases to screen for, but does not require any state to do anything. Read your sources.
Second of all, they only screen for diseases that are greatly impacted by early intervention. Inborn errors of metabolism make up a large portion of those diseases, the effects of which can be devastating if not detected. Many of these can be helped immensely by special diets, which is why it is SO important to detect them BEFORE symptoms manifest, at which point neurological effects have already occurred.
False positives are always possible, but I personally find them to be a more than acceptable risk if it saves lives (or quality of life).
There's nothing wrong with questioning authority, but living in a constant state of fear and suspecting something just because government entities endorse it is ridiculous.
The hair grows in thick where the horn used to be.
word. this is blowing my mind. i'm very informed on why they conduct the screening. it's hardly something significant enough for me to refuse it. for me, the benefit outweighs the "risk".
and i don't care if the government is keeping track - i'm not a conspiracy theorist.
I will most likely pick and choose what I will have my child screened for. PKU would definitely be one we do as I also plan to EBF.
As far as the gov't, sadly so, DH is finishing up a post-doctoral appointment at the USDA, so technically he is a gov't employee as well for the next few months at least.
As far as turning the information to the private sector, well the issue lies on the fact that the information should not be kept unless you as the parents are consenting to such, private or federal/state storage. If you are ok with it, then that is up to you!
Exactly! OP, your reasons against it are politically driven and selfish.
Can you please build on this? I know you C&P'ed this, BUT HOW does the newborn screening violate the US Constitution? Inquiring minds want to know... (waves political science degree).
Kthnxbai!
actually....i remember you. i can't believe i didn't remember. this crazy is just the cherry on top for you, my dear.
too bad they can't do a finger prick screening for racist nutter. i hope you got your chicken quesadilla.
https://community.thebump.com/cs/ks/forums/thread/37205393.aspx
I know. LOL. Makes no sense.
DD #1 passed away in January 2011 at 14 days old due to congenital heart disease
DD#2 lost in January 2012 at 23 weeks due to anhydramnios caused by a placental abruption
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lol. She wanted STEAK, violet, STEAK!!!!!!!!
I had one for lunch, actually, and it was DELISH.
The rest of this post, I want to understand, but I have a really hard time doing so. I just can't endorse opting out of harmless screenings. False positive results for any of the screens listed would lead to further testing-- a risk I'd willingly accept in order to be sure that my child gets the earliest and best treatment possible if anything is actually found.
I forgot too. Waiting for a big DD.
S. 1858 violates Art.1, Section 9, Clause 7. "No money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law..." Congress did not make law requiring DNA samples of newborns. Public money is being given to the institutions which collect the samples, yet no legislation has been created or been voted on.
The paragraph you quoted from me came from here: https://www.aapsonline.org/legis/pauls1858.php