SCREEN NEWBORNS FOR HEARING IMPAIRMENTS



House Bill 5522

Sponsor: Rep. Mike Kowall

Committee: Health Policy


Complete to 9-1-00



A SUMMARY OF HOUSE BILL 5522 AS INTRODUCED 3-21-00


The bill would amend the Public Health Code to require hospitals that deliver babies and health professionals who deliver babies outside of a hospital to perform hearing impairment screening for each newborn before discharge from the hospital or before the health professional leaves the site of the birth. If the screening cannot be done before discharge, it would have to be performed within 90 days after birth. "Hearing impairment screening" would be defined as the employment of one or more of the following tests:


  1. auditory brain stem response;

  2. otoacoustic emissions; and

  3. a test approved by the Department of Community Health.

Each hospital and health professional would have to transmit the results of the hearing impairment screening to the department; the child's parent or guardian; the child's primary care physician, if known; and the child's provider of audiological services, if known. In addition, each hospital and health professional would have to recommend to the parent of each child who was determined to be a hearing impaired infant that the child undergo an audiological evaluation as soon as practicable. A "hearing impaired infant" would mean a newborn infant or other infant who had a disorder of the auditory system of a type or to a degree that caused a hearing impairment that interferes with the development of the child's language and speech skills.


The hospital or health professional would also have to provide the parent with a list of agencies and health professionals that provide such hearing evaluation services. A hospital with 500 or fewer births per year could have the hearing impairment screening performed at another facility. The department could promulgate rules to implement the bill's provisions.


MCL 333.9451





Analyst: S. Stutzky


This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan House staff for use by House members in their deliberations, and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.