Date: 04/29/2015

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB15-1281

SENATE COMMITTEE ON HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES

Votes: View--> Action Taken:
Refer House Bill 15-1281 to the Committee on ApproPASS



12:13 PM -- HB 15-1281

Senator Hodge presented House Bill 15-1281, concerning newborn heart defect screening. The bill requires that all newborns born in a Colorado facility below an elevation of 7,000 feet on or after January 1, 2016, be screened for congenital health defects using pulse oximetry prior to being released from the birthing center. The Newborn Screening Council within the Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) must evaluate whether or not the pulse oximetry testing in birthing facilities at or above elevations of 7,000 feet meet the CDPHE newborn screening criteria. Each facility must report pulse oximetry screening results to the Newborn Screening Council.


12:14 PM -- Dr. Marci Sontag, Colorado School of Public Health - University of Colorado, spoke in support of the bill. She discussed current newborn screenings and research being done to verify that pulse oximetry testing accurately detects heart defects at altitude.


12:22 PM -- Dr. Jason Wright, Children's Hospital Colorado, spoke in support of the bill. He discussed the complications of critical congenital heart disease and his experience working with newborns with congenital heart defects.


12:27 PM -- Dr. Mary Kohn, University of Colorado Hospital, spoke in support of the bill. She explained that University Hospital decided to test newborns once the pulse oximetry test was identified as being accurate in Colorado at altitudes below 7,000 feet. She told the committee that since the implementation of testing at the hospital, and the beneficial outcomes of the testing.


12:32 PM -- Katherine Mulready, Colorado Hospital Association, spoke in support of the bill. She told the committee that rural hospitals did not oppose the testing.


12:34 PM -- Gretchen Whitehurst, representing herself, spoke about her son's experience as a child who was born with a congenital heart defect. She spoke in support of the bill.


12:39 PM

Senator Hodge made closing comments. Committee members commented on the bill.
BILL:HB15-1281
TIME: 12:39:46 PM
MOVED:Crowder
MOTION:Refer House Bill 15-1281 to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed on a vote of 4-1.
SECONDED:
VOTE
Aguilar
Yes
Martinez Humenik
Yes
Newell
Yes
Crowder
Yes
Lundberg
No
Final YES: 4 NO: 1 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS