Question

In your opinion, should all states be mandated to screen for all disorders that newborn screening detects? Why or why not?

Answer 1

The idea behind newborn screening is to detect rare diseases and prevent them from doing irreversible damage to the baby's development before the baby symptoms appear. The whole process of newborn screeening is very simple and all it needs is a small drop of blood from the baby's heel when he/she is a few days old. Then the blood specimen after drying is sent to the laboratory where testing is performed and results analyzed. Newborn screening programs may screen for up to 50 diseases which can be genetic, metabolic, blood, or hormonal. Majority of the babies are completely healthy but if the screening shows the sign of a rare disease then the parents are notified immediately. Without the newborn screening program the parents know this problem in the first place which makes newborn screening very crucial. It is extremely important to detect the potential disease during the first day so that the doctors can decide on the best course of action. In fact, a simple adjustment in the diet can change the whole course of life or prevent serious brain damage. Without newborn screening the potential rare disease could have made the baby disabled for life. Newborn screening gives a baby a second chnace for normal life. It is public healthcare procedure and from the government's perspective of different states, it is small investment that can save a large amount of money through expensive treatments.

This is the reason why I personally think that all states be should be mandated to screen for all disorders that newborn screening detects since it is better tonot to take a chance with a baby's life.